Tomlin building choice for Fitzpatrick's alignment.......

PHOENIX: The Steelers are aware that Minkah Fitzpatrick is a stud at safety.

In the peak of his career, the three-time All-Pro is among the NFL’s top performers at the position.

The team that the Steelers will line up next to Fitzpatrick when the 2023 season begins is yet unknown.

The Philadelphia Eagles signed long-time starting strong safety Terrell Edmunds to a one-year contract last week, which created a hole in the starting lineup for the team.

Nonetheless, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin didn’t seem unduly concerned when he spoke at the Annual League Meeting here on Monday.

Regarding safety, Tomlin stated, “It’s in development.” “Our draft preparation is going well, and the free agency process is still proceeding. Therefore, we will undoubtedly add to that group. What that means is up for debate, but both pools have some deserving candidates.”

It may come as a bit of a surprise to choose one or more of those possibilities.

Tomlin stated that he has discussed the potential of occasionally playing some safety with recently signed free agency cornerback Patrick Peterson.

“He is adaptable. He is not only talented, but intelligent as well, and we won’t hesitate to move him about,” Tomlin remarked. “I’ve already had that conversation with him. I believe he is rather enthusiastic about the possibility of that.”

That would be a possibility to take Edmunds’ place, though probably not full-time.

He wouldn’t, however, be the first former All-Pro cornerback to make the change. Others, like Charles and Rod Woodson, two defensive backs inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, excelled in their latter years after switching from cornerback to safety.

Peterson, who turns 33 in July, stated he’s open to doing more than simply playing outside cornerback at his inaugural press conference two weeks ago.

“Going into Year 13, I always used to beg my coaches, like, ‘Man, just put me other places,'” Peterson recalled. “Because I’ve always believed that if you have a talented player, you shouldn’t put him in a specific sport. You want to put the quarterback under a lot of stress. Throughout downs, you want to put as much pressure as you can on the quarterback. Thus, he will know how to avoid a player who you know will be lined up in a specific location for every possession.”

The Steelers used Fitzpatrick in the same way in 2022 after adding Damontae Kazee. Despite missing the first half of the season due to an arm fracture, Fitzpatrick, Edmunds, and Kazee formed a three-safety package for Kazee’s return, which allowed him to play in the slot, deep in the center, or in several other locations on the field.

Additionally, Kazee might be considered for a few different positions in 2023.

Furthermore, it might not really matter who is viewed as the free person and who as the strong safety.

These days, being strong and free is somewhat of a misnomer, Tomlin added. “Most men play left and right. Those that don’t are essentially interchangeable according to calls or schematics. That’s precisely where I believe we are. As our home base, Minkah patrols the center of the field, and we operate from t

The concept is to field the top 11 players available for the job at hand, then place the playmakers to create opportunities.

And one of the Steelers’ top playmakers is Fitzpatrick, who has 17 interceptions in four seasons with the team.

here.”

“As long as he’s a part of us, it’s our job to put him in position to be impactful, to wreak havoc, to do the things that he’s blessed to have the talents to do,” Tomlin stated. He’s a clever guy, and people that work with him are adaptable. That gives us the chance to carry out those actions. It is not possible for that to decline.

• Wide receiver Diontae Johnson is putting a lot of effort on forgetting about the 2022 campaign, according to Tomlin, who claimed he has spoken with the player.

A year after tying a career high with eight touchdowns in 2021, Johnson did not score a touchdown in 2022 despite catching a team-high 86 catches for 882 yards.

Tomlin does not believe that Johnson’s inability to enter the end zone was a problem in and of itself.

“It’s probably a reflection of us and where we were but I’ve been pretty transparent about that,” Tomlin stated. A year ago, we were still very much a squad and a unit in growth. We’re not sorry for it. We made the necessary adjustments to be competitive and, especially toward the end, to position ourselves for victory. It gives us a foundation on which to flourish, and that is our goal. As far as we’re concerned, several of these conversations from last year still apply.