Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick willing to take on bigger role in Steelers defense

In 14 games with the Pittsburgh Steelers last season, Minkah Fitzpatrick tied for the team lead with five interceptions, was selected to the Pro Bowl and became the team’s first defensive back to be named first-team All-Pro since Troy Polamalu in 2011.

As an encore, Fitzpatrick would like to bring more to the defense in 2020, his first full season with the team that acquired him at the expense of a first-round draft pick.

He believes it is possible as long as the Steelers coaching staff, opposing quarterbacks and the up-in-the-air schedule allow him to do it.

After playing mostly free safety after his acquisition from the Miami Dolphins, Fitzpatrick is open to filling other roles on the defense, whether lining up in the box, playing cornerback in slot or being given the freedom to roam that Polamalu enjoyed a decade earlier.

He also is content trying to improve at a singular position as he enters his third NFL season.

“If the coaches want me to move around, I’ll move around,” Fitzpatrick said Tuesday on a video conference call.

“If they don’t, then I don’t need to. I wouldn’t say it’s a goal. If they need me to move around, I’ll learn the system and get it down to a ‘T’ just in case I have to or if they ask me to move.”

Fitzpatrick was plenty dangerous during his indoctrination to the Steelers defense last year. He tied cornerback Joe Haden for the team lead with five interceptions. He defended nine passes, forced one fumble and recovered two more.

Altogether, Fitzpatrick was involved in eight of the Steelers’ 37 takeaways, with both totals representing NFL highs. He had a 96-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts and a 43-yard fumble return for a score a week later against the Los Angeles Rams. Both plays were pivotal in games the Steelers won by two and five points, respectively.

With Fitzpatrick binding the defense together on the back end, the Steelers finished third in the NFL against the pass and fifth in total defense. According to Pro Football Focus, Fitzpatrick allowed eight catches on 16 targets and held quarterbacks to a 27.3 passer rating, the best figure from Week 3 until the end of the season.

Still, after that fumble return against the Rams, Fitzpatrick got his hands on the ball just twice in the final seven games: a deflected pass against Cleveland and a fumble recovery at Cincinnati.

“I think teams started to take less shots downfield or less shots where I was,” Fitzpatrick said. “If I was in the half (field), there weren’t going to be targets in that area where I was. I don’t know if it was part of a gameplan or the makeup of the quarterback, but I did realize a difference.”

Fitzpatrick was asked if there is a countermeasure the Steelers can use in 2020 so opposing offenses can’t minimize the 23-year-old’s impact on the game. Unless Fitzpatrick is used at other spots on defense, it might be difficult to do.

“There’s not too much I can do,” Fitzpatrick said. “Me and (strong safety) Terrell (Edmunds) can move around and switch roles. Schematically, it’s all up to the coaches. If they want to move me somewhere else, they’ll do that. Or if they want me to do something I don’t normally do on a specific play or a specific down and distances, I’ll do it.

“It’s up to the coaches.”

As much as Fitzpatrick is infinitely more familiar with the Steelers playbook now that he has an offseason to study it, it remains to be seen when he will get to show off his knowledge on the field. Organized team activities, which were scheduled to start Tuesday, are being held on a virtual basis, much like earlier phases of the NFL offseason program. It might not be until training camp — whenever that begins — until players can start implementing the knowledge they have learned in the virtual setting.

“The only concern for me is the chemistry part,” Fitzpatrick said. “We have to find ways to make it happen. I’m a very self-motivated type of guy. It’s not too big of a deal. It’s not hard for me. I’m working as hard if not harder as I would be if I were at the facility. I’m doing everything I can to stay in shape.

“When I get back, I want to make sure I hit the ground running.”