The Pittsburgh Steelers opened the 2022 season with a 23-20 win—thanks to S Minkah Fitzpatrick, not once, but twice. He opened the scoring with a pick-six on the second defensive play of the game and then forced overtime.
Up 20-14, the Steelers allowed a very late six-yard touchdown pass to WR Ja’Marr Chase to tie the score. All the Cincinnati Bengals needed to do was complete the point after attempt and call it a day. Minkah Fitzpatrick admits he nearly did as well.
“I was angry, I was frustrated, we lost on a play that they shouldn’t have caught the ball”, he recalled for a recent video through the NFL of players breaking down their own plays. “I was just frustrated and I was like, ‘Man, I ain’t even gonna rush; it ain’t even worth it’. Then I was like, ‘Nah, Imma lock in, let me try and go for it’”.
It’s a good thing he very quickly experienced a change of heart and decided to rush because it proved the difference between a win and a loss. The blocked extra point forced overtime, and the Steelers eventually won.
And former Steelers CB Cameron Sutton deserves some credit as well, as he occupied the left wing. Focusing on Sutton, TE Drew Sample gave a half-hearted effort while trying to seal Fitzpatrick. As a result, he had a golden opportunity to make the play.
“They opened up the gap real, real, real wide for me. The wing didn’t put any type of hand on me”, he recalled, referring to Sample. “He just kind of threw his arm out there flimsy. I swiped it down and got in there”.
The Bengals’ last-second touchdown had a demoralizing impact, the Steelers seemingly snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. NFL teams made 94.6 percent of their extra point attempts in 2022. Teams make them consistently enough that they’re largely taken for granted. I couldn’t tell you the last time the league average fell below 93 percent.
But you don’t need to block 93 percent of the kicks, you only need to block the one. And teams are going to have plans in place when there is one kick they absolutely need to block. You can overload one side as best you can within the rules—you always want to stress the wing and force him to make a decision. They’re generally supposed to take the inside player, but here Sample chose the outside.
And I’m not sure I buy Fitzpatrick when he says he considered not rushing, at least in any significant way. Sure, the thought probably ran through his head, but he’s not the throw-in-the-towel sort. This wasn’t even a kick to tie the game. The Bengals had already tied the game. Make the extra point and you win. Of course he got up for that, regardless of his frustration in the moment.
