Player: S Minkah Fitzpatrick
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: Minkah Fitzpatrick finally got off the schneid on Saturday, recording his first interception in nearly two years. And he played an overall decent game, on the whole, even if it was a bad day for the Steelers. But he clearly needed that, and, who knows, perhaps it sparks something.
Minkah Fitzpatrick’s interception on the first day of winter in 2024 spared him of going two calendar years without one. His last interception prior to Saturday came on Jan. 1, 2023. He went the rest of that year and nearly the rest of 2024 without another.
Considering he recorded 19 interceptions in his first five NFL seasons, that’s a long drought. And unexpected. Just before his dry spell started, Minkah Fitzpatrick led the league in interceptions. And the thing is, he wasn’t really even coming close. He only had six passes defensed in between his last two interceptions. For a starter who is typically around the ball, that’s not easy to do.
The Steelers, of course, repeatedly tell us that opposing teams are just not throwing his way. And there is some truth to that, but playmakers find ways to make plays. In Fitzpatrick’s case, he wasn’t finding ways. It wasn’t him having opportunities and not capitalizing on them—he just wasn’t in spots to have opportunities.
The Steelers’ injuries at inside linebacker didn’t help, as they forced Fitzpatrick to play in the box more. But there’s never going to be a great explanation for his dry spell. Now that it’s over, the question is, what comes next? For years, the team told us they’ll start to come in bunches.
Well, the Steelers will need them because they have survived on takeaways. And they will probably need a couple of them to have any hope of beating the Chiefs. Especially if the rest of the secondary isn’t healthy, which is a legitimate concern.
As the season progresses, Steelers players’ stocks rise and fall. The nature of the evaluation differs with the time of year, with in-season considerations being more often short-term. Considerations in the offseason often have broader implications, particularly when players lose their jobs, or the team signs someone. This time of year is full of transactions, whether minor or major.
A bad game, a new contract, an injury, a promotion—any number of things affect a player’s value. Think of it as a stock on the market, based on speculation. You’ll feel better about a player after a good game, or worse after a bad one. Some stock updates are minor, while others are likely to be quite drastic, so bear in mind the degree. I’ll do my best to explain the nature of that in the reasoning section of each column.
