Steelers’ Minkah Fitzpatrick has sights on Ed Reed, Troy Polamalu & Brian Dawkins: ‘That’s the standard’

My, how times of changed for the suddenly shark-like Steelers secondary. Once a pathetic Pittsburgh weakness, it’s now a fast-rising strength that should strike fear in the hearts of opposing quarterbacks. The clear catalyst was the trade last September to acquire Minkah Fitzpatrick from the Miami Dolphins. Now, Minkah’s talking about ranking with the great safeties of the past decade or so: “The Ed Reeds and the Polamalus and the Brian Dawkinses of the game,” as Fitzpatrick himself says. But that’s just for starters. The 2020 unit shapes up as the team’s best in years, one long-time Steelers beat reporter writes. It boasts two Pro Bowlers last season in cornerback Joe Haden and Fitzpatrick, and cornerback Steven Nelson is bucking to be the third this year. Minkah will move around much more, helping his counterpart, Terrell Edmunds, as he enters his third season. Finally, depth, especially at cornerback, is much improved. It all spells shutdown for opposing offenses, with quarterbacks quaking in their Nikes. Much more on the rise of the secondary, plus a wide-ranging Steelers Grab Bag, in this edition of the Steelers Update Podcast. So listen up, Steelers fans!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices