Jets Country

Minkah Fitzpatrick Takes Shot at Jets After Steelers' Collapse in Fourth Quarter

Fitzpatrick said that the Steelers are better than the Jets after Pittsburgh blew a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, dropping to 1-3 on the season.

Max Goodman

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This Steelers safety was particularly salty after Pittsburgh's fourth quarter collapse against the Jets on Sunday.

Minkah Fitzpatrick took a shot at New York minutes after a 24-20 loss, a game in which the Steelers were winning by 10 during the fourth quarter.

"It's frustrating losing to people that you know that you're better than, more talented than," Fitzpatrick told reporters in the Steelers' locker room.

Whether that's true or not, the Steelers didn't show it on Sunday. New York was able to battle back against Fitzpatrick's defense, finding a way to secure an ugly win—as quarterback Zach Wilson called it—despite countless costly mistakes.

If the Steelers are better, why didn't they stop the Jets from coming back in the fourth quarter?

"They adapted to our game plan," the safety added. "They started throwing passes outside the numbers, away from the robber, which is what I was playing. But you know, [Wilson] gets paid too. He's an NFL quarterback, he's going to make great throws. When they adapt, we've got to adapt."

To his credit, Fitzpatrick was involved all afternoon on Sunday. He racked up eight tackles and defended two passes in addition to nearly scoring on pick six, returning an interception 34 yards down to New York's four-yard line. 

Still, Pittsburgh dropped to 1-3 with the loss, bracing for four challenging matchups in a row before their bye week, facing the Bills, Buccaneers, Dolphins and Eagles. In other words, while the Jets have all the momentum, starting the year 2-2 and exceeding expectations with promising flashes, the Steelers are in danger of slipping out of contention before Halloween.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin also mentioned the Jets after the game, tipping his cap while focusing on what his own team did poorly.

"We're disappointed," Tomlin told reporters. "No disrespect to the Jets, they made plays and won the football game. But it’s not about who we play. It’s not about rabbits foots and so forth. We’ve got to play better. We’ve got to put them in better position. We’ve got to perform better. And I’m talking about the collection of players and coaches in there. It’s very tangible and fundamental things. ... I’d be remiss if I didn’t compliment those guys. They made the necessary plays. We had some penalties on possession-down-like plays. They did enough to keep drives extended and move the football and we didn’t."

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Jets for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. He also covers the New York Yankees, publisher  of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Yankees site, Inside The Pinstripes. Before starting out with SI, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. While at school, Goodman gathered valuable experience as an anchor and reporter on NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. Goodman previously interned at MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman and connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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