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Minkah Fitzpatrick, shortly after meeting with Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin before the NFL draft in 2018, told his mother that he would like to play for the head coach. from Pittsburgh at some point in his career in the NFL.
Fitzpatrick had his wish.
After 18 games in Miami, Fitzpatrick, a versatile half-defenseman and the 11th pick in last year's draft, was elected. traded to Steelers Monday. He will be Start safely in the upcoming Pittsburgh match, a road game against the San Francisco 49ers 2-0.
Fitzpatrick, in an individual interview with Missi Matthews of Steelers.com, addressed a wide range of topics, including how he discovered that he had been traded to Pittsburgh.
"Late [Monday] Fitzpatrick said: "We had a little chat and at the end he told me that they had reached agreement and that I was going to head towards the night. 39 had a phone call from Chris Grier, the general manager at Dolphins. " Pittsburgh. "
How did he take the news?
"Honestly, I was excited," Fitzpatrick said. "Pittsburgh is a historic program, always known for [having] a great defense. Coach Tomlin is an excellent coach. I spoke to him several times before last year's draft. I felt really good with him as a coach and man. After meeting him, I told my mom: "It's a coach I would really like to play with someday," so I'm excited about it. "
What did he like about Tomlin when he met her?
"Just how he is doing," Fitzpatrick said. "Obviously, I've already seen him coach in the field, and then I met him personally as a man.That confirms everything everyone said about him." C & # 39; is a player coach.It is easy to talk with him.Try to be too cool or too naughty or something like that.He was just himself and that is something for which i am I said I would like to play someday. "
Fitzgerald, who has held several positions in Miami, talked about what he liked about the security post.
"I like the fact that you can move around and do different things," he said. "If you play at certain positions, you do the same thing every time you hit the road, you can not move with safety, there's a lot of flexibility in the defensive back, you can do a lot of different things." blitz, you can cover, you can cover half [the field]you can cover the whole field. I really like this aspect. "
Would he accept that his versatility is one of his greatest attributes as a player?
"Yes, I would agree," he says. "Last year, my rookie year, I played everywhere on the field, at a high level, no matter where I was .. Of course, there are things that I can improve, but I think I've done a very good job, and that's why I'm here to keep growing, keep improving, work on my strengths and my weaknesses and just continue. "
Fitzpatrick is looking forward to playing alongside Terrell Edmunds, the Pittsburgh safety coach, who was selected 17 places after Fitzpatrick in the 18 th draft.
"I know him a little bit," said Fitzpatrick about Edmunds, who won the Joe Greene Great Performance Award, awarded annually to the team's best rookie. "We've been training together a bit in Florida before the combine for a few weeks, he's a competitor, all the exercises we're competing in. We train in training. I'm looking forward to working with him." He's a professional, he's doing the right thing in the field and I'm excited to work with him. "
Fitzpatrick said that learning the game book and the terminology of Pittsburgh's defensive scheme would be his biggest challenge as he was gearing up for Sunday's game against the 49ers. Although he still has a lot of work to do by Sunday, Fitzpatrick is enthusiastic about taking what he sees as a fresh start in Pittsburgh.
"That's exactly what it is – it's a fresh start, a clean slate," he said. "This is just another opportunity to prove myself and what I can do to add to this team."
Fitzpatrick, a native of New Jersey, shared what he learned after Hurricane Irene destroys his family's house In 2011, Fitzpatrick, who was 14, said the experience had taught him the value of the word hard while enjoying what he had.
"In the meantime, I've certainly learned a lot about myself, about my family, about all those who go through anything, you still learn a lot about yourself," he said. declared. "It certainly taught you to appreciate the little things, because after that I did not have any more clothes, shoes or anything like that, so I had to go and see other people for that.
"[It] I've learned to appreciate the little things in life, to appreciate my family, and that has just taught me to work hard because after that, my family and I have pretty much rebuilt our home through us -Same. I had to go from school to work for football. It just taught me how to manage my time, to honestly have a professional mind at a young age and to grow up faster than most people. "
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