Minkah Fitzpatrick: 'I Think we are Going to Have an Even Better Defense Than Last Year'
Pittsburgh Steelers fans had the opportunity to ask safety Minkah Fitzpatrick questions on Tuesday through the team's official app. Fitzpatrick answered questions regarding COVID-19 precautions, his personal opinions on renegade and more.
"I remember the first time they played it" said Fitzpatrick on the Steelers use of Renegade in pivotal moments. "The crowd went crazy. My teammates went crazy. I started bopping up and down and getting excited. It changes the whole atmosphere of the game."
Fitzpatrick also admitted to studying Troy Polamalu film to this day, and confessed to his mother that he wanted to play for Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin following their pro-day interaction during his time preparing for the NFL Draft. Fitzpatrick even called his own shot when asked how many interceptions he'd get: "Six. Maybe seven."
The quote that stuck out the most, however, came when Fitzpatrick was asked about the defense:
"I think we are going to look even better. I think we are going to have an even better defense than last year" said Fitzpatrick on the Steelers Nation Unite Huddle.
While Pittsburgh saw the likes of Javon Hargrave walk in free agency, the Steelers welcome back a healthy Stephon Tuitt among a plethora of Pro Bowl players on the defensive side of the ball.
The Steelers led the league in sacks (54) and takeaways (38) on the defensive side of the ball in 2019, with Fitzpatrick accounting for eight of those turnovers despite being traded to Pittsburgh just a few weeks into the season.
AllSteelers previously did an evaluation on Pittsburgh's turnover generation rate and whether or not the Steelers were likely to see the same amount of success in 2020. While turnovers are generally random and unable to be predicted, it appears Fitzpatrick is confident in his and everybody else's abilities to repeat such success on the defensive side of the ball.
Donnie Druin is a Staff Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
