The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens have arguably the greatest rivalry in the NFL. The two teams always bring their best against each other, usually being among the AFC’s best. Due to this rivalry, it isn’t often that one of them will trade with the other. However, it has happened. The most recent instance involved the Ravens trading defensive lineman Chris Wormley to the Steelers in 2020. Although he felt disrespected due to the trade at the time, it sounds like Wormley appreciates his time in Pittsburgh.
“When I look back at it, those three years in Pittsburgh were three of my best seasons when it comes to production,” Wormley said Tuesday on Nithin Ramachandra’s The NR Hour Sports Show on YouTube. “I’m very thankful, looking back on it. Hindsight’s always 20/20. Even [Eric] DeCosta, our GM, he said, ‘You’re welcome’ to me when I saw him a couple months ago when I was first coming back here.”
Wormley did rejoin the Ravens this year, so it’s clear there were no hard feelings between him and the team. He was traded for only a fifth-round pick in 2020, but seeing the Ravens and Steelers execute a trade was still strange. In fact, it was only the second time the two rivals made a trade with each other.
Looking back, it’s easy to say the Steelers got the better end of that deal. Wormely did play some of his best football with the Steelers. From 2020 to 2022, he served as a key rotational piece along their defensive line. He even served as a starter for most of 2021, undoubtedly his best professional season. Wormley posted seven sacks, helping the Steelers make the playoffs.
However, the Ravens did not come out of that deal as losers either. They flipped that draft pick to the Minnesota Vikings for a sixth-round pick and a seventh-round pick in 2020. Those selections turned into wide receiver James Proche and safety Geno Stone. Proche was a depth piece for the Ravens for a few years, but Stone developed into a fine player, recording seven interceptions in 2023.
That helps explain why DeCosta wasn’t too upset about Wormley’s success in Pittsburgh, which also included some impressive performances against the Ravens. It was clear Wormley was upset about the Ravens’ apparent disrespect, but it’s nice to see he’s made peace with that part of his career.
Mike Tomlin on what he told Chris Wormley when Baltimore traded him to Pittsburgh.
"When a team trades you within the division, they're telling you what they think of you."
Wormley had 2.5 sacks today. Big-time performance. #Steelers
— Alex Kozora (@Alex_Kozora) December 6, 2021
With one game against the Ravens left on the schedule this year, we’ll see if Wormley has an impact against the Steelers. He was a man on a mission whenever he played against the Ravens. It doesn’t sound like he holds any animosity toward the Steelers, but in those divisional battles, tensions can be high.
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