Pittsburgh Steelers Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin recently fell on his sword, telling the media that he feels he let his star free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick down during the 2023 season. Fitzpatrick, known to dominate the secondary, was nearly absent in his normal role. The Steelers' defense was plagued by injuries, which left Austin with no choice but to plug Fitzpatrick into some of those holes.
Austin's admission followed Fitzpatrick's statement that he can't wait to return to playing "Minkah ball." The coach's statement shows that the team wants to support that. Austin pointed out that when you look at the film from last season, you see teams exploiting Fitzpatrick's absence, throwing balls to where he would normally be on the field.
A fan recently asked former Steelers linebacker Arthur Moats on his podcast, The Arthur Moats Experience, what he thought about Austin's statement: was Fitzpatrick failed by his coach?
"I think it's coach talk. I think as a coach; when you are in a coach and player relationship, it has a lot of similarities to father and son, the mentor/mentee dynamic. You think about how much time you spend with these people, how much you pour into them and how much they sacrifice and commit back to you. The good coach, the good players, they don't point fingers."
Moats said he wouldn't expect to see either Fitzpatrick or Austin lay the blame on the other. According to Moats, great athletes and coaches ask what they could have done better and wonder how they can improve their performance.
Players like Fitzpatrick don't blame the fact that they were being used out of position; instead, they push to improve. The two messages are the same, just from opposite sides.
"We don't point fingers because if you point fingers, that's seeking comfort, and if you seek comfort, if you're always looking for an excuse to justify why it was, then you're never going to overcome. You're never going to continue to grow and excel and reach that success. I think for him, he's just looking at it like that and saying, 'I got to be better because I failed Minkah. If Minkah wasn't the best safety in the world last year, then that's on me as a coach.' Minkah, on the flip side, is saying, 'If I wasn't the best safety in the world, it's because of me. It wasn't nothing you did wrong, coach. I got to make plays.' That's the reason both of those guys are here."
Moats said this is how the great ones handle these situations. It is exactly what he would expect from a coach or a player in Black and Gold. He said he would always prefer that they put the burden on their shoulders and show class, adding that finger-pointing has happened in the past, and it just causes more issues.
During the Matt Canada era, Moats said we saw finger-pointing and complaints about the play-calling. That mentality and attitude weakened the entire offense and diminished their success. It also damaged relationships all over the team.
Steelers' Minkah Fitzpatrick Is Just Built Different
Fitzpatrick spent three years playing football at the University of Alabama, and it was clear that he was something special. He helped the Crimson Tide win two National Championships while he was there. He also won the Jim Thorpe and Chuck Bednarik Awards.
Recently, Fitzpatrick's former teammate at Alabama, Anthony Averett, told Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he knew he was special the first time he saw him play. The two met when Fitzpatrick went to Alabama as a young recruit. He was one of the top high school football prospects in the country.
