Steelers' Minkah Fitzpatrick Shuts Down Injury Concerns

The Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro spoke about missing time.

Jul 27, 2023; Latrobe, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (39) observes drills during training camp at Saint Vincent College. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers defense hasn't spent a whole lot of time working with both DeShon Elliott and Minkah Fitzpatrick during team drills. Instead, Fitzpatrick heads to the sideline and backup Damontae Kazee enters the fields.

After several days of this occurring, speculation started to form about whether or not Fitzpatrick was dealing with an injury. Despite being fully dressed and participating in all other aspects of practice, the All-Pro safety not taking team drill reps was worrisome to some watching.

Fitzpatrick was asked about the injury speculation during training camp, though, and said he's 100% healthy.

"No, I'm healthy," Fitzpatrick said. "Just year seven, I got a lot of miles. I'm blowing up the GPS every day when I'm practicing and Coach [Tomlin] is telling me, 'Mink, it's a marathon.' He says it all the time, he has to save me from me sometimes."

Fitzpatrick spends time riding the bike and watching the plays from the back with defensive coordinator Teryl Austin. While working and getting to know his new running mate Elliott is important, he's spending plenty of time with him in Latrobe during camp, and will many more reps throughout the season.

As of now, he's just taking it slow, as the Steelers want to presever their stars before the season. Throughout camp, the team has held Cam Heyward, T.J. Watt, Patrick Queen and Isaac Seumalo back from practice time. They also continue to keep Russell Wilson sidelined for most of team drills as he works his way back from a calf injury.

Expect Fitzpatrick to continue becoming more involved as the team gets closer to the regular season. But for now, he's going to stay preserved, and the Steelers won't have many worries about him being able to step in make a significant impact come Week 1.

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