Steelers Now
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin opens up about the team trading All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ most surprising move of the offseason was trading three-time first-team All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick as part of their blockbuster deal with the Miami Dolphins. Head coach Mike Tomlin explained the team’s reasoning for moving on from Fitzpatrick.
“Very difficult. His experience here and the production that he gave us speaks for itself. But you got to make tough choices,” Tomlin said. “Obviously I’ve been talking glowingly about two top notch players that we acquired in that. But I don’t obviously lessen the impact of a player like Minkah. We’re really excited about the acquisition of two significant players on both sides of the ball, particularly as it pertains to the passing game.”
The Steelers did acquire impact players on each side of the ball in Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith and three-time first-team All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
Smith, 29, is coming off the best season of his eight-year NFL career. In 2024, he recorded a career-high 88 catches for 884 yards and eight touchdowns.
Ramsey, on the other hand, proved to still have plenty of good football left in him in his ninth NFL season while recording 60 tackles, one sack, two interceptions and 11 passes defensed.
However, Tomlin is aware Pittsburgh is losing a significant piece on defense in Fitzpatrick, who the team will now have to replace.
“Certainly, it’s created challenges in other areas that I’m excited about sorting through in an environment like this where we divide the labor up and see who is capable of what,” Tomlin said.
Ramsey will play a role in doing just that but not as a full-time safety, which leaves the Steelers’ answer for Fitzpatrick’s absence still up in the air.
Fitzpatrick has 608 tackles, five forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, 20 interceptions, 54 passes defensed and four touchdowns in his seven-year NFL career.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Mike Tomlin Explains Why Steelers Traded Minkah Fitzpatrick
