In mid-September, the Steelers traded their 2020 first-round pick to the Dolphins for defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick and a couple of third-day picks going each way. At the time, the story was more about the Dolphins unloading as much of their talent as they could to gain future draft picks, and whether the Steelers were nuts to give up their first-round pick next year when the need for a young, top-tier quarterback to eventually replace Ben Roethlisberger becomes more glaring every season — especially considering the elbow injury Roethlisberger suffered Week 2 against the Seahawks that cost him the rest of the 2019 season.

Pittsburgh lost that game to Seattle, 28-26, and that was after an opening week nightmare against the Patriots that set the team at 0-2. But there was something else that happened in the Seahawks loss that portended the Fitzpatrick trade: Seattle tight end Will Dissly caught two touchdown passes, and then-deep safety Sean Davis (who was subsequently placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury) was highly vulnerable in deep coverage on both red-zone throws from Russell Wilson. Davis (No. 21) found it tough to align his coverage with rookie linebacker Devin Bush (No. 55), and Dissly (No. 88) had free movement through the Steelers’ defense.

It was something head coach Mike Tomlin and defensive coordinator Keith Butler had seen far too often in recent years. The team brought senior defensive assistant/secondary coach Teryl Austin on board before this season to shore things up, but Davis’ move from strong to free safety was very much a work in progress at the time of his injury, and of the Fitzpatrick trade. As it was the first time the Steelers had traded their first-round pick from the upcoming season since 1966, it definitely went against organizational type.

Per Pro Football Focus, Pittsburgh’s safety positions were an absolute mess in Weeks 1 and 2. Davis allowed two receptions on two targets for 30 yards and an opponent passer rating of 118.8. Terrell Edmunds allowed six receptions on eight targets for 74 yards, a touchdown and an opponent passer rating of 142.7. Kameron Kelly allowed three receptions on four targets for 111 yards, a touchdown and an opponent passer rating of 156.3. Not optimal, and something the Steelers were going to have to correct if they wanted half a shot at the playoffs this season.

So, when Pittsburgh traded for Fitzpatrick, the interesting thing about the deployment of their new player is how single-minded they were. Per Next Gen Stats, Fitzpatrick has lined up as a deep safety on 85% of his 238 coverage snaps. Both at Alabama and with the Dolphins, Fitzpatrick had been a far more versatile player. He played six different defensive back roles for the Crimson Tide — everything from blitz to deep safety — and for Miami in 2018, he played 23 snaps on the defensive line, 95 in the box, 166 at free safety, 281 at wide cornerback and 379 in the slot. The slot was where Fitzpatrick did his best work as a rookie last season; no other interior pass defender with at least 20% of his team’s snaps at that position allowed a lower opponent passer rating than Fitzpatrick’s 53.4. He allowed just 20 slot receptions on 39 targets for 200 yards, 111 yards after the catch, one touchdown and two interceptions.

With all this in mind, the extent to which Fitzpatrick has changed Pittsburgh’s pass defense as a pure deep safety is a revelation.

In his time with the Steelers, Fitzpatrick has allowed seven catches on 13 targets for 90 yards, four interceptions, no touchdowns and an opposing passer rating of 36.2. To put that into perspective, Earl Thomas is allowing an opposing passer rating of 32.9 in that same time period, with one interception and no touchdowns. Earl Thomas is the best safety of his generation, playing the deep third almost exclusively. Minkah Fitzpatrick is playing the majority of his reps at one of the NFL’s most difficult positions for the first time in his career, and he’s shutting down every opponent at a Pro Bowl level. He certainly did so against his old team in Week 8, with two of his four picks on the season.

“He’s a splash playmaker, and it’s not a surprise to a lot of us who see the work he puts in off and on the field,’’ edge-rusher T.J. Watt recently said of his new teammate, via Ed Bouchette of The Athletic. “How he approaches film study and the notes he takes. I sit next to him in team meetings, he’s always jotting down notes and I’m seeing a lot of things that aren’t even brought up at meetings that I say to him, ‘What the heck are you writing down, man?’ He’s always got something. Clearly, he has a system down, and he’s goes out and practices really hard. He’s structured and always making sure he’s well prepared for practice. He’s just a true professional, and it shows by paying off on Sunday.”