The Pittsburgh Steelers have said time and time again that they’re not worried about Minkah Fitzpatrick and his lack of splash plays in the last few seasons, but their actions speak louder than their words this offseason.

One week after saying on 93.7 The Fan that the Steelers were making defensive schematic adjustments that featured some quarters coverage and more blitzes during Organized Team Activities and mandatory minicamp, DeFabo revealed in a piece for The Athletic Thursday morning that the changes defensively are mirroring Fitzpatrick’s assignments at Alabama, where he was once the best safety in the country.

“However, with schematic changes to the defense that mirror Fitzpatrick’s college assignments at Alabama, a better third safety (Juan Thornhill) who will put Fitzpatrick in different places, a new secondary coach and corners more capable of playing man coverage (which often leads to tips and overthrows), it wouldn’t be surprising to see the splash return,” DeFabo writes, according to The Athletic. 

Why the splash might return for Minkah Fitzpatrick this season.

Here’s one quick thought on every player on the Steelers’ defense: https://t.co/XJGWcEd7Ke

— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) June 26, 2025

Making some schematic changes to better align with Fitzpatrick certainly seems like the Steelers are worried about his play and ability to get back to an All-Pro level.

Last season, the Steelers spent a great deal of time in single-high safety looks, leaving Fitzpatrick as the single-high safety while DeShon Elliott to slid down into the box. Elliott was a force for the Steelers, but Fitzpatrick’s impact was greatly limited.

Quarterbacks didn’t really throw his way to test him in coverage, and while he largely kept a lid on things in the passing game and was a good tackler coming downhill to support, he wasn’t able to make those splash plays like he has in the past, which made him a multi-time All-Pro with the Steelers.

Getting away from the single-high look and utilizing more quarters coverage, keeping the safeties closer to the line of scrimmage while still being able to support the run, could help Fitzpatrick get back to his playmaking ways. At Alabama under Hall of Fame head coach Nick Saban, Fitzpatrick was often in the “Star” role for the Crimson Tide, who utilized a lot of Cover 7 and played match quarters, which blends man- and zone-coverage principles.

While at Alabama, Fitzpatrick dominated, winning a number of individual awards like the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s best defensive back and the Chuck Bednarik Award as the Defensive Player of the Year. He was a unanimous All-American in 20217 and was first-team SEC in 2016 and 2017.

In his first few years in Pittsburgh, Fitzpatrick was a ball-hawking safety, recording 17 interceptions through the 2022 season, earning three All-Pro nods. But in the last two seasons he has just one interception and one forced fumble. The Steelers tried playing him closer to the line of scrimmage in the box and in the slot in 2023, but he struggled with injuries and was ineffective. Last year in single high he was too far away from the play to have an impact consistently.

Now, the Steelers are mixing it up. Those changes might not be drastic in the sense that they are permanent, though. We’ll see how much the coverages are shown during training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, and during the preseason against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Carolina Panthers.