Pittsburgh Steelers safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick had quite the season in 2022. His initial stats weren’t particularly appealing in 2021, as he had to spend less time as a play-maker. Instead, he had to help in the run game, totaling 124 combined tackles on the season. General manager, Omar Khan wasn’t worried though, as he didn’t hesitate to extend Fitzpatrick.
Pittsburgh Steelers safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick against the Baltimore Ravens offense in Week 14 of the 2022 NFL season. Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (@JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
In his first big move as GM of the Steelers, Khan made Fitzpatrick the highest-paid safety in NFL history with a four-year, $73.6 deal. In 2022, he showed just why he’s worth that money. Fitzpatrick’s six interceptions were tied for the most in the NFL in 2022. He was back to his ball-hawking ways, as he also tied his career-high in pass deflections with 11.
As a result, he was selected to the 2022-23 Pro Bowl Games. It was the third time he's made it in four seasons in Pittsburgh. While the official AP All-Pro teams have yet to be released, he has a good shot at making his third appearance on that team as well. On Wednesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter released the All-Pro teams that were selected by the players via the NFL Players Association. Fitzpatrick made it, the lone Steeler to be selected:
Here is the inaugural Players’ All-Pro Team, via the NFL Players Association: pic.twitter.com/KyeqjecgEG
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 11, 2023
It's interesting that he made this list selected by the players. For 12 years now, NFL Network releases a "Top 100" list of the best players in the NFL. The list is voted on by the players, and Fitzpatrick didn’t make the list before the 2022 season. In total, 10 safeties made last year's version of the list. While he's widely regarded as arguably the best safety in football, Fitzpatrick was somehow omitted.
Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (@JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
In a slight surprise, veteran defensive lineman, Cam Heyward was left off the players' selected team. Somewhat under the radar in 2022, he had yet another dominant season, despite being 33 years old. In 2021, he made the AP First Team All-Pro as well as the Pro Bowl with 10 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, and 17 quarterback hits in 17 games. In 2022, he racked up 10.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, and 22 QB hits. Despite the better numbers, he failed to make this year's Pro Bowl roster.
Should Heyward have made the players' selected team? Where does Fitzpatrick rank amongst the best safeties in football? Was there any other guys that were snubbed? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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