Ravens' Patrick Queen taking motivation from Mike Tomlin's disrespectful comments

The Ravens-Steelers rivalry is a little more personal to Baltimore linebacker Patrick Queen than others. He says comments made by Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin early in his career fueled his fire for the AFC North showdown.

In the week leading up to Sunday’s game, Queen said that Tomlin made “disrespectful” comments during the linebacker’s first season in Baltimore. It’s something he’s never forgotten.

“Any time you join this organization and they talk about this game, it’s the game that defines you and makes you a Raven,” Queen said, per Pro Football Talk. “When I was on their sideline my rookie year, Mike Tomlin was looking at me, yelling at me, ‘You’re not a Raven, you’re not a Raven. You’re not supposed to be there, you’re not one of them.’ So every time I play them there’s something personal.”

As a follow up, Queen was asked if he thought Tomlin was joking. To him, the context doesn’t really matter.

“I don’t care if he was joking. I don’t care if he was serious. At the end of the day I’m on your sideline and you’re telling me I’m not a Raven. That’s kind of disrespectful,” Queen said.

Queen entered the NFL in 2020 as a first-round pick out of LSU. In his time, he has proven himself as a great defensive player. He was named to the PFWA’s All-Rookie Team in 2020.

So, the rivalry rages on between Pittsburgh and Baltimore. And it means just a little bit more to Queen, who will undoubtedly want to make a statement on Sunday.

Kenny Pickett expected to play in Steelers-Ravens game

Although he suffered a knee injury last weekend, the outlook for Kenny Pickett looks pretty good. The Steelers quarterback was upgraded to full participant in Thursday’s practice. That likely indicates he starts for Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Pickett left in the third quarter of a 30-6 loss to the Texans in Week 4. An MRI revealed he suffered no “serious damage,” but his status remained in doubt.

Following Sunday’s report, the expectation is that Pickett starts for the Steelers, who enter the game at 2-2. The Ravens come in at 3-1.

Sure, the season remains young, but this game could play an important part in the division race. It should make for an interesting rivalry game in Week 5.

The Ravens and Steelers square off at 1 p.m. ET with the game airing on CBS.