The Pittsburgh Steelers franchise has become more famous for its players with less than stellar character, rather than its play on the field over the last 20 years. There has been far more off the field incidents than playoff success over this time period. This makes it curious that the one player who exemplified what the Steelers franchise is supposed to stand for, finds himself traded away. Trading Minkah Fitzpatrick, and all he stands for, sends the wrong message. Both to the league, and the Steelers locker room as well.
Ironically, or maybe not, the player Pittsburgh got in return for Minkah Fitzpatrick is known to be a bit of a clubhouse cancer at times. Jalen Ramsey is a talented corner without question. He is however been known to be a handful when things aren’t going his way. Ramsey has been traded away three times now in his career. That is not because of his play on the field, but his actions off it. The Steelers have once again acquired a potential problem, while giving up the exact opposite.
Minkah Fitzpatrick is known for being a no nonsense leader for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He has had some well documented dust ups over the years with players like Diontae Johnson, and Chase Claypool. Players who have become poster children for all that is wrong with this organization. Fitzpatrick spared no one, even fellow veteran leader Cam Heyward. He went at Heyward over a costly personal foul penalty versus the rival Ravens in 2023. Fitzpatrick demanded excellence on the field. That’s something the Steelers franchise used to do, apparently not so much anymore.
One great example of this really stands out. Fitzpatrick once stantioned off the Steelers logo in the locker room because he felt it was being stepped on too much. His quote was “Something as small as keeping our logo clean, it’s simple, but it means a lot”. This is the kind of player the Steelers should be clinging to, not running away from.
Fitzpatrick’s play on the field has slipped a bit the last two seasons. It’s well documented he has only one turnover during that time frame. What most don’t mention is he has averaged 95 tackles per season the last for years. Perhaps his over compensation for the Steelers awful run defense may have something to do with his lack of interceptions. There’s also the way the Steelers have used Fitzpatrick as of late. Tomlin’s overly safe style of defense has left his star free safety 20 yards off the line of scrimmage on most plays. Tomlin uses Fitzpatrick as a deterrent for the long ball, and its worked. Teams rarely test him, and why would they? There are so many other options to pick on in the Steelers weak secondary.
Maybe Minkah Fitzpatrick has slipped a little. Maybe he will never be the same ball hawk he once was. Is that worth trading away the team’s best leader? Particularly when the franchise is about to get a major reset. The Steelers have positioned themselves to have a huge influx of young players in 2026. They currently sit on 12 picks in the 2026 NFL draft. What better locker room influence than Minkah Fitzpatrick to guide those young players along? Trading this player sends a clear message. The Steelers are more concerned with quick fixes, than long term solutions. They may indeed regretting this one in the short term, and in the coming years.