Minkah Fitzpatrick is solidifying his status as an All-Pro in 2022

Minkah Fitzpatrick has been an All-Pro in the past, but here’s why the Pittsburgh Steelers star safety will return to glory in 2022. 

Many NFL analysts were very hard on Minkah Fitzpatrick during his 2021 season. After being traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers early in 2019, Fitzpatrick went on a rampage that included two First-Team All-Pro honors. However, the star safety really came back down to earth last season.

In 2021, Minkah had a very rough start to the year before salvaging his season late. Still, Fitzpatrick managed just 2 interceptions in 16 games and didn’t have nearly the amount of splash we were used to seeing. Eventually, this resulted in him finishing with an overall grade of 57.2 via Pro Football Focus — good for 73rd among 92 qualifying safeties last year.

It’s safe to say that he has flipped the script. We are more than halfway through the 2022 season, but Fitzpatrick is already on pace for the best year of his NFL career. Minkah just turned 26 years old more than halfway through his fifth NFL season, but he’s on pace for some career numbers.

Despite missing a game with an emergency appendectomy, Fitzpatrick has already recorded 4 interceptions for 94 return yards and a defensive touchdown. This is in addition to 8 pass defenses and 62 tackles from the safety position, according to ESPN stats.

For the most part, Minkah has been doing this without any sort of consistent pressure that forces the ball out of the opposing quarterback’s hands quickly. With Watt sidelined for half of the year, Fitzpatrick clearly rose to the occasion to be the clear star of this defense. For his outstanding efforts, he is Pro Football Focus’s number one ranked safety in the NFL entering Week 14 — earning an overall grade of 85.2 so far.

Minkah Fitzpatrick is continuing on a Hall of Fame pace with Steelers

After a brief hiatus, Minkah Fitzpatrick is picking up right where he left off — continuing on a road to the Hall of Fame that started back in 2019. Obviously, he’s not guaranteed to have a bust in Canton one day, but he’s certainly trending in the right direction.

The threshold for consideration typically starts with at least four First-Team All-Pro honors. Fitzpatrick has already earned two, and he could very well be in line for his third following the 2022 season. While Pittsburgh’s defense is no longer elite like it was when he was an All-Pro in 2019 and 2020, it certainly hasn’t regressed because of Minkah.

Right now, Pittsburgh’s defense is ranked 24th in yards allowed per game and 19th in points surrendered per contest, per Team Rankings. These are numbers that AP voters could consider when choosing the All-Pro list for 2022. It’s certainly possible that Pittsburgh’s defense could improve down the stretch from where it was — especially now that T.J. Watt is back.

If Minkah Fitzpatrick earns his third First-Team All-Pro honors in just his fifth NFL season, he will be well on pace for a gold jacket. This is something every Pittsburgh Steelers fan would love to see someday.