Minkah Fitzpatrick contract: Steelers give star safety record extension

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed Minkah Fitzpatrick to a record contract extension, making him the highest-paid safety in NFL history.

Last offseason, Pittsburgh signed T.J. Watt to a record deal. This offseason, it’s Minkah’s turn.

The Steelers are a team which relies heavily on their defense. Especially without Ben Roethlisberger moving forward, Pittsburgh will be forced to hold other teams to reasonable point margins if they are to succeed, and contest for a playoff spot. Mitch Trubisky remains Mitch Trubisky, even if he’s improved slightly. Kenny Pickett needs time to improve. And Mason Rudolph…let’s just shut that door now.

But Fitzpatrick is among the best defensive players in football at his best. He can patrol one side of the secondary on his lonesome. Plus, the Steelers gave up a first-round pick to land him in the first place. Signing him, whatever the cost, was a no-brainer.

Minkah Fitzpatrick contract: Steelers make history

Fitzpatrick’s new deal will pay him $18.4 million over the four years of the deal. It does make him the highest-paid safety in NFL history for now.

Given Roethlisberger is now off the books, Pittsburgh had money to spend this offseason. While they brought in Trubisky, the majority of those funds have gone in-house, to keep their key contributors — especially on defense — happy.

Fitzpatrick and Watt are the makeup of this team. Whether it’s possible to still claim the phrase ‘defense wins championships’ in 2022 remains to be seen, but expect the Steelers to test the theory, at the very least.