How Minkah Fitzpatrick turned the Steelers into Super Bowl Contenders

It was September 15th, week 2 of the 2019 NFL season when a sudden pop changed the outlook of the present and the future for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ben Roethlisberger tore three tendons in his elbow which required Tommy John Surgery after that game against the Seattle Seahawks, but with that low came a great high for the Steelers organization.

 Later the next week the Steelers traded their 2020 first and fifth round picks, along with a 2021 sixth round pick for Miami Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and two draft picks. From the outside perspective the move for Fitzpatrick was heavily criticized. Many thought the Steelers should tank and draft a quarterback as Roethlisberger is in his late 30s and thought they would finish with a top five pick, but the Steelers still believed they had the talent and coaching ability to compete and win games. The Steelers stuck with what they had at quarterback in Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges and despite below average quarterback play went 8-8. Head Coach Mike Tomlin had been getting heat for underachieving for years, but last year without future Hall of Famer in Big Ben and a rash of injuries on the offensive side of the ball to go 8-8 was an accomplishment. Some even said it was Tomlin's best season as a head coach. What led this renaissance of a season was none other than Fitzpatrick himself which he helped take the defense to a whole new level and 5-0 start in the 2020 season and with the return of Big Ben the sky is the limit. 

For context, let's analyze what the Steelers offense looked like during the 2019 season. The Steelers ranked bottom five in the NFL in total rushing yards, touchdowns thrown, first downs gained, yards per play, total yards, and rushing yards per attempt while only scoring 18.8 points per game. For the Steelers to win 8 games with those atrocious offensive stats speaks to the coaching ability of Tomlin and the elite play of the defense. The Steelers started last year 1-4 before winning seven of their next 8, some of the highlights included holding the defending NFC champion Rams to 12 points and forcing MVP Lamar Jackson into 3 interceptions and only 3.8 yards per play for the Ravens. Once Minkah Fitzpatrick entered the building everything changed during the 2019 season and the 2020 season. The Steelers last season ranked first in sacks with 54 and first in pressures with 180, first in takeaways with 38, second in interceptions with 20, second in yards per play allowed at 4.7, second in fewest yards after the catch, and third in rushing yards per attempt at 3.8 These stats show the Steelers defense last season as not allowing big plays, stopping the run, pressuring a teams quarterback while forcing turnovers at a high rate with TJ Watt and Bud Dupree combing for over 26 sacks after going years with struggling to produce turnovers. Minkah himself did tons of damage with 5 interceptions, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries all while having 2 defensive touchdowns, including this pick six against the Indianapolis Colts. Minkah's nose for the end zone is also not new to him as he had 4 defensive touchdowns at Alabama and also had 9 career college interceptions.

Some may say those defensive numbers are hard to translate to a new season and hard to repeat, but through five games this season the Steelers are second in the NFL in rushing yards per attempt at 3.3, third in yards per play allowed at 4.9, second in interceptions with 8, tied for second with only allowing three rushing touchdowns, first in sacks at 24 and pressures at 79 despite playing one less game than most teams, and have allowed the fewest passing yards in the league this year. Many point out that the Steelers have not played quality opponents to this point, which is fair as Steelers opponents have combined for a 9-19-1 record, but they defeated a hot Browns team, who leads the NFL in rushing and defeated two top ten quarterbacks in Deshaun Watson and Carson Wentz, regardless of their own circumstances. Also, consider who the Steelers have shutdown in their last five weeks Saquon Barkley (15 carries for 6 yards), Melvin Gordon (19 carries for 70 yards), Miles Sanders (11 carries for 80 yards, but 74 of 80 came on one carry), and Kareem Hunt (13 carries for 40 yards). Steelers have only allowed one team to rush for over 100 yards this season and that was Denver at 104. Everyone is gonna see what this defense is made of the next two weeks two of the best teams in the NFL in the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens all without budding middle linebacker Devin Bush, who tore his ACL in Sundays win over the Browns. 

While the defensive numbers are impressive no one is super surprised at how the Steelers defense, but the offense has been the story. The Steelers do not have the sexy numbers, but what they lack in explosion they make up for in timing and taking care of the ball. Ben Roethlisberger is playing some of the best football of his career, even if the numbers do not reflect that. Big Ben has an 11:1 interception ratio while also having career highs in QBR at 109 compared to 94 and completion percentage at 69 compared to 64, despite averaging only 235 passing yards per game. The Steelers are also top five in the NFL with the fewest total turnovers at 4 and are tied for the fewest interceptions in the league. What hurt the Steelers last year was teams not respecting their passing game which led to their run game suffering but this year Steelers are in the top half of the leagues in yards per rush at 4.3 and rushing yards gained at 684. The Steelers have had a 100 yard rusher in four of their five wins, which allows their offense to be more diverse and take more downfield shots, including this deep ball to rookie Chase Claypool. 

The Steelers have a great collection of young playmakers with Juju Smith-Schuster, James Washington, Diontae Johnson, Claypool, and James Conner. Also, the last team to win a Super Bowl with a true superstar wide receiver might have been back during the Jerry Rice days or even maybe during the greatest show on turf, but WR committees typically win out. They are not making as many mistakes as in years past, Roethlisberger is not having to do it all on his own while still working his way back in, and the Steelers have a top 5 scoring offense at 31 points per game to pair with a top 5 scoring defense at 18.8 points per game.

This is may not be the best defense Big Ben has played with, but they are certainly up there and are certainly the most athletic and the fastest defense. The young playmakers have been slowly evolving and the balance has been key to Pittsburghs success so far. The Steelers have some big games down the line including trips to Nashville, Baltimore, and Buffalo while also still having to play a good Colts team and the Ravens at home. Despite the tough stretch ahead this defense will give the Steelers a chance in every game they play and with a Hall of Fame quarterback anything is possible.