Signed, sealed and delivered: Steelers' Minkah Fitzpatrick glad to get record contract done before camp

Fulfilling a wish he made to his father a decade ago, Minkah Fitzpatrick stood at a podium Thursday, basking in the knowledge that he had achieved financial security for his family by becoming the NFL’s highest-paid safety.

A day earlier, Fitzpatrick signed a five-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers that included a $17.5 million signing bonus, $36 million guaranteed and averages $18.4 million over the final four years, surpassing Jamal Adams as the highest compensated player at his position.

“It’s something you work to for a long time,” Fitzpatrick said. “I remember when I was 15 and telling my father — we were working together — I’d be in the position I am today. Being here is surreal.”

That the Steelers signed the 25-year-old Fitzpatrick to his record-setting contract in mid-June was a departure from normal operating procedure. Such extensions typically don’t get done until August — or in the case of T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward the last two years, September — when the regular season is approaching. That’s the deadline when the Steelers cease all negotiations.

Fitzpatrick said team president Art Rooney II and new general manager Omar Khan reached out to his representatives “a few weeks ago” ready to negotiate.

“This was one they wanted to get done,” Fitzpatrick said.

By signing Fitzpatrick before training camp, the Steelers avoided a repeat of last summer when Watt refrained from participating in team portions of practice while negotiations were taking place on his record-setting contract.

Fitzpatrick didn’t take part in team drills during organized team activities and minicamp, and he was hoping to avoid following Watt’s precedent into training camp.

“I wanted to be out there with my teammates practicing and competing,” he said. “Thankfully, we got it done in the time we did.”

A two-time, first-team All-Pro representative who is approaching his fifth NFL season — and fourth with the Steelers — Fitzpatrick said it was important to be recognized as the league’s highest-paid safety.

“I think I’m the best at what I do, so, obviously, you’d like to be paid in that way and represented in that way,” he said. “It could be a week from now or a year from now, somebody is going to pass it up, but you want to raise the bar for guys behind you and raise the bar for people in your own locker room.”

In Fitzpatrick’s mind, he showed he was committed to the Steelers by his presence at offseason workouts. Although he limited his work to individual drills, Fitzpatrick watched the rest of practice from the field, was involved in film study and stayed afterward to get in more one-on-one preparation with other members of the secondary.

“It’s hard for me to be away from the game,” he said. “I love this game. It’s a big part of who I am and my identity. I could have been at home in Florida training with my family. I wanted to be up here and show my teammates I’m still focused on winning, focused on us and our development.

“I’m a real hands-on guy. I like to talk. Sometimes talk too much on the field and people get mad at me. I know what the standard is.”

It didn’t take long after his arrival from Miami two games into the 2019 season that Fitzpatrick was introduced to the standard. He was impressed that the Steelers traded for him the same week they lost quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to a season-ending elbow injury.

The Steelers overcame a 1-4 start by winning seven of their next eight games before finishing 8-8.

“That could have been a season where they tanked and called it quits,” Fitzpatrick said. “But they went out and acquired me and some other guys. It wasn’t a perfect season, but it was a season dedicated toward winning even if there weren’t prime conditions for winning. I think that set the tone for the last few seasons, showing me this is a winning program and that they are going to do whatever it takes to win.”

Despite returning to the playoffs each of the past two seasons, the Steelers lost in the wild-card round each time and haven’t won a postseason game since January 2017. Fitzpatrick, though, thinks the Steelers have the pieces in place on defense to help change history.

In the past three years, the Steelers have made large financial commitments to defense, signing Heyward through 2024, Watt through 2025 and Fitzpatrick through 2026. This year, the Steelers have a higher allocation of salary cap dollars spent on defense than any other NFL team.

“The playoff game was an embarrassment,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was not our typical selves. That motivates us. Money is a blessing, and it creates opportunity for everybody around us and our families. They are saying we are trusting you to be the best and prepare to be the best, compete against the best and be A-plus-plus on a consistent basis. These guys trust me with this amount of money and this amount of responsibility, so it’s my job to go out and play at a high level to show I’m deserving of this compensation.”