PITTSBURGH — Steelers defensive lineman Keeanu Benton slowly walked off the field and to the bench after a 15-yard fourth-quarter connection between the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry was called back due to an ineligible man downfield penalty.
It appeared Benton was gesturing toward his knee while down on the field and the Steelers’ staff worked on him by the bench. At one point, Benton got down and shot out of a three-point stance a few times.
Keeanu Benton has three tackles in the contest, which stood 15-10 in Pittsburgh’s favor when he exited the game. Dean Lowry and Isaiahh Loudermilk are the other two defensive lineman dressed for the Steelers.
One play later, rookie linebacker Payton Wilson ripped the ball from Justice Hill’s grasp for an interception, stealing the momentum from Baltimore and setting kicker Chris Boswell up for his sixth field goal make of the afternoon.
Benton, a Wisconsin product, was taken in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Entering the day, he’d totaled 17 combined tackles, five quarterback hits, five passes defended, and a fumble recovery.
The Steelers were already missing Alex Highsmith, who was listed as an inactive prior the matchup. Second-year linebacker Nick Herbig filled in as starter for Highsmith, making a big play right away by forcing a Henry fumble.
Linebacker Patrick Queen, a former Raven, also starred on that side of the ball for Pittsburgh, jarring the ball loose from Isaiah Likely and recovering it himself.
Baltimore had an important defensive injuries of its own, as Kyle Hamilton was banged up earlier in the day and Roquan Smith was ruled out for the rest of the game with a hamstring issue.