Steelers' replacement for Minkah Fitzpatrick explains why it's unfair to judge his recent seasons in Pittsburgh based on numbers

The Pittsburgh Steelers shocked the NFL world earlier this month when they traded away star safety Minkah Fitzaptrick. But when you look at his last two seasons in Pittsburgh, on film and in the box score, you see why it happened. That doesn't mean it should have, according to Juan Thornhill… Juan Thornhill defends Minkah Fitzpatrick "I […]

Rob Gregson — NFL News Writer

Jul 23, 2025 5:02 PM EDT

The Pittsburgh Steelers shocked the NFL world earlier this month when they traded away star safety Minkah Fitzaptrick. 

But when you look at his last two seasons in Pittsburgh, on film and in the box score, you see why it happened. 

That doesn't mean it should have, according to Juan Thornhill…

Juan Thornhill defends Minkah Fitzpatrick

"I mean, they bring me in to take away that deep ball. If I'm being honest with you, watch my history. A lot of teams don't really throw the deep ball if I'm being honest, once I'm a part of a defense," Thornhill told Christoper Carter of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Wednesday. "That's why I think my production has been down. and the same with Minkah as well. Minkah is a great player. if you have a great guy back there that can make a lot of plays on the ball, teams aren't going aren't going to really try you back there so that's why a guy like Minkah, they say [he] struggled a little bit he didn't struggle, you just can't get interceptions if the ball is not coming your way."

While I appreciate the sentiment from Thornhill, and he certainly is correct to a degree, there's more to the story with Minkah. For one, he was playing more than traditional free safety in recent years. 

There's a whole other argument for another day regarding what that did to his skillset, but Fitzpatrick didn't make plays anywhere last season. It would be one thing if only his interception numbers fell off. 

But Minkah struggled with tackling, with covering tight ends 1v1, and there were constant communication breakdowns under his watch. That's not to say he's a bad player or won't produce for the Miami Dolphins, but the Steelers viewed Ramsey as an upgrade, and they view Thornhill as a reasonable enough replacement. 

We'll see who comes out looking right in the end. 

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