4 Steelers to watch against the Browns on Thursday Night Football

Player to watch No. 1: Minkah Fitzpatrick

You can say what you want to about the Steelers as an organization, but there are some things that they do exceptionally well. Their front office doesn’t make rash decisions, they develop their wide receivers, and they have an excellent personnel staff.

When the Steelers sent a first-round pick to the Dolphins for Minkah Fitzpatrick in 2019 it was a bit of a head-scratcher. But they recognized the role that Fitzpatrick would play in their defense, and in hindsight, it appears they got themselves a bargain at free safety.

Fitzpatrick has started the 2022 season playing at an elite level. Through two games this season, he has two interceptions, one touchdown, and 12 solo tackles. With T.J. Watt out for what is likely the first half of the season, Fitzpatrick is the Steelers defender that is the most likely to alter the outcome of a game.

It will be interesting to see how Pittsburgh deploys Fitzpatrick on Thursday night against Cleveland. While the Browns were more efficient through the air in Week 2, they still aren’t pushing the ball vertically with any regularity. Fitzpatrick doesn’t have many flaws in his game, but he has shown a tendency to try and jump routes when teams try to play a red zone offense between the 20s.

If the Browns want to loosen up the Steelers’ defense, they need to get Fitzpatrick to respect the vertical aspect of their offense. With no true deep threat at wide receiver, at least one that opposing teams must respect, Cleveland could use Amari Cooper to set up a double move and hit a chunk play early.

If they’re unable to earn that respect, it’s going to be a dangerous night for the passing game, and No. 39 will be a large reason why.