The trade that brought safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Pittsburgh Steelers easily ranks among the best of Kevin Colbert’s tenure as general manager. In three seasons, Fitzpatrick has been named an All-Pro twice and in 2021 led the team in tackles. We already talked about where our friends over at Touchdown Wire ranked Fitzpatrick among the top safeties. Now let’s see what ESPN thinks.
Where TD Wire had Fitzpatrick ranked No. 11 on their rankings, ESPN was far more generous putting him at No. 2 behind only Denver Broncos safety Jeffrey Simmons. Here is what they had to say about it.
“Above the neck game — he can play strong and free safety and has range,” an NFC exec said. “Started for Miami as an outside corner as a rookie. How many safeties can handle that?”
Fitzpatrick had what many would call a down season in 2021 but it really just showed his versatility. With the run game struggling, Fitzpatrick was forced to go from his centerfield role where he can make those splash plays from the previous two seasons and had to focus on run stopping.
Pittsburgh made Fitzpatrick the highest-paid safety in the league this offseason with a new contract. Now the team is hoping the improvements made in the front seven will allow Fitzpatrick to focus on what he does best.
