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Steelers murky two-man MVP race is starting to clear up

By Tommy Jaggi

CINCINNATI, OH - NOVEMBER 24: T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after the Pittsburgh Steelers make a third down stop during the fourth quarter of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on November 24, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OH - NOVEMBER 24: T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after the Pittsburgh Steelers make a third down stop during the fourth quarter of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on November 24, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images) /
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The Pittsburgh Steelers hand out a Team MVP award near the end of each season. Here’s why the race for MVP is starting to clear up.

At the beginning of the season, many fans would have guessed that an offensive player like Ben Roethlisberger, JuJu Smith-Schuster, or James Conner would have been the frontrunner for Team MVP. However, an injury to Big Ben was the turning point of a Steelers offense that has since struggled to move the ball.

Fortunately, Pittsburgh has two legitimate Defensive Player of the Year candidates to help carry their team. I am obviously referring to Pro Bowl edge defender T.J. Watt and former Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

I wrote an article mid-season about how Steelers MVP race was a tossup between two players. Now entering December, one of those players is starting to pull away.

While Fitzpatrick has been outstanding for the Steelers this sesaon, his production has dipped a bit as of late and he is starting to show his human side. At one point, Minkah had collected 4 interceptions over a three-game span. However, over his last two performances, Fitzpatrick has earned 8 combined tackles and a fumble recovery.

Meanwhile, T.J. Watt has been the star of the show. Noticeably disrupting opposing offenses on nearly every snap, Watt sticks out on tape more than anyone on the team. He now has at least a half-sack in 8 consecutive games, and he recently earned his 5th forced fumble of the season against the Bengals last week. Watt already has more quarterback hits than he did all of last season (25 so far) and is on pace to crush his tackles for a loss from 2018.

Watt is currently the best-rated edge defender in the league with an overall grade of 91.0, according to Pro Football Focus – outpacing household names like Khalil Mack, Jadeveon Clowney, and the Bosa brothers.

Minkah Fitzpatrick has been far from bad lately, and his dip in production could be attributed to seeing fewer balls thrown his direction. The safety is still the 8th graded player at his position and is tied for the league lead in interceptions (5).

No matter who this award ultimately goes to, we can just be glad to know that the Steelers currently have two world-class defenders who will continue to help elevate this team to more wins despite an ailing offense.

Next. 4 things we learned from Steelers victory over Bengals. dark

The Steelers host the Cleveland Browns this week in a matchup that promises to be heated after a late-game brawl two weeks ago. Watt and Fitzpatrick will no doubt be at it again to prove who’s the MVP of this team.

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