Ravens get bad news before showdown against Steelers

Agholor suffered the concussion in a Week 15 win over the New York Giants when he landed hard after making a leaping 26-yard catch early in the fourth quarter.

Agholor only has 231 receiving yards and two TD catches this season, but the 10-year veteran has made the most of his receptions with an impressive 16.5 yards per catch, 29th in the league.

Agholor is the No. 3 receiver for the Ravens behind Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman. However, Flowers is Baltimore's only healthy receiver who has more than 10 catches this season. Bateman (654 yards, seven TD catches), the team's No. 2 receiver, did not practice Thursday and is questionable for the game with a foot injury.

The injuries come at a critical part of the season for Baltimore (9-5), which trails the Steelers (10-4) by one game in the AFC North. If the Ravens win, which they have not done in eight of the past nine meetings against Pittsburgh, Baltimore would be tied with the Steelers atop the division with two games remaining. A Ravens loss would give the Steelers the division title for the first time since 2020.

That task became even more difficult for Baltimore with the loss of Agholor for the game and the potential absence of Bateman. The Ravens traded for former Carolina Panthers WR Diontae Johnson on Oct. 29 to add depth at the position for situations like these. However, Johnson was excused from team activities this week after previously being suspended for one game for refusing to play Dec. 1 against the Philadelphia Eagles. On Friday, the team waived him.

The focus at wide receiver will now turn to fourth-year player Tylan Wallace (10 catches, 191 yards, one TD) and rookie Devontez Walker, who made his first career catch in the Week 15 win against the Giants. Wallace has averaged19.1 yards per reception, 16th in the NFL. That is encouraging, given what Agholor has been able to do after the catch.

According to StatMuse, the Ravens have the third-best scoring offense (29.9 PPG) in the NFL. Even though Pittsburgh will be without its leading receiver, George Pickens (right hamstring), the Ravens have a tough task because of limitations in the passing game.