The Steelers knocked out one of the more obvious objectives from their 2021 offseason to-do list Tuesday afternoon.
According to Ian Rappaport, the team has exercised its fifth-year option on safety Minkah Fitzpatrick:
The #Steelers have exercised the fifth-year option for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, source said. The #Bears have done the same for Roquan Smith.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 27, 2021
After being selected as the 11th overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Dolphins, Fitzpatrick's rookie contract was set to expire after the 2020 season without the usage of his fifth-year option. During that time he's started all 30 games the Steelers have played since trading to get him, totaling 20 pass breakups, two forced fumbles, three recovered fumbles and nine interceptions.
Those efforts have led to him be named to Pro Bowls and First Team All-Pro in both of his 2019 and 2020 seasons with the Steelers, being one of the most recognized safeties in the NFL. After his success, keeping Fitzpatrick on his fifth-year option will cost the Steelers a $10.61 million salary cap hit in 2021.
When looking at the current projections for the 2022 salary cap, the Steelers would stand to have approximately $73.56 million left in effective salary cap space for that season, which still be the second-most in the NFL behind the Colts' $85.56 million.
Money was never an issue with Fitzpatrick, as his play has been the best the Steelers have seen from a safety since Troy Polamalu. His ability to play as the single-high safety opens up more opportunities for aggressive underneath coverage and blitz packages by his teammates.
Fitzpatrick's addition is directly tied to the Steelers' defensive ascent after ranking as the 16th-best scoring defense in 2018, and rising to rank fifth in 2019 and third in 2020, the highest ranking the defense has achieved since it ranked first in scoring in 2012.
The next question on fifth-year options is with Fitzpatrick's fellow safety Terrell Edmunds. Read my Talking Point on why the Steelers should do the same for him here.
