Minkah Fitzpatrick is not only the next Dolphins star, he’s already their best player
By Shawn Digity
Minkah Fitzpatrick dropped to 11 in the 2018 NFL Draft. Suddenly, it was an easy decision for Dolphins brass. It was the right decision too.
We all know the story, Minkah Fitzpatrick dropped to 11 in the 2018 NFL Draft after the Cardinals traded up to 10 to take Josh Rosen. At that point, it was an easy decision for the Miami Dolphins brass. It was the right decision too.
I’ll go on record and be perfectly honest about that pick. I wanted Tremaine Edmunds, the linebacker from Virginia Tech. I had actually forgotten Fitzpatrick was even on the board.
I spent several months of the draft season being conditioned to believe Fitzpatrick was a top-5 talent, and he was, but when the 11th pick rolled around, I had forgotten that he hadn’t actually been drafted.
It didn’t take long for me to admit my mistake though. Fitzpatrick quickly grew on me and I even went on about him back in July about him being the next big Dolphins stud.
Now, we’ve heard his name a thousand times. I’ve probably mentioned him half of those, but the writing is on the wall. Minkah Fitzpatrick is good. No, wait. He’s better than good already, he’s sensational. Dolphins fans have seen it too. I’m not out on some street corner with my “The End is Near” sign screaming about Fitzpatrick being a superstar.
You can see it in the games, and because of his play, there’s empirical data to support it. PFF MIA Dolphins has some great examples of that. There’s one about his most recent performance against the Packers.
https://twitter.com/PFF_Dolphins/status/1062148317415686144
It’s not just restricted to a one-game sample size though. Fitzpatrick has been great all season so far. Here’s one backing up Fitzpatrick’s season-long coverage.
https://twitter.com/PFF_Dolphins/status/1061638460321292288
I understand some fans are wary of PFF and their analytics. People seem to be hit or miss on their metrics, but it holds weight when all the position groups and teams are categorized under the same formulas.
If Fitzpatrick were crowned Defensive Rookie of the Year by someone (it’s probably Derwin James at this point, but Fitzpatrick has plenty of time left), then you won’t see me argue against that case. I’m sure many fans would feel much less the same. If someone, or a lot of someones, says your rookie is playing lights out, then most fans wouldn’t disagree.
Something else that really impresses me about Fitzpatrick is the intangibles. That word gets overused and it’s a cliché now, but some of the things he has done has been uncanny.
For example, has Fitzpatrick been on the injury report this season? I write up the defensive previews for every game and I haven’t mentioned him a single time in the injury updates.
Also, if you’re in the market for a good laugh, you can retroactively check out one of those aforementioned defense previews to see how wrong I was. There’ll be plenty more where that came from for the Week 12 preview against the Colts.
Speaking of clichés, Fitzpatrick’s perfect attendance goes hand-in-hand in with the “availability is an ability” adage. That phrase has some truth to it. I wonder where the Dolphins would be if Fitzpatrick had missed some games. I’m going to move on before I jinx someone, not that I’m superstitious or anything.
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Minkah Fitzpatrick has outperformed almost every other Dolphins player this year. The only cases that could be made are Xavien Howard, but he only plays one position, unlike the “Swiss Army knife” and Laremy Tunsil, who is banged up at the moment but playing up to his potential finally.
I wanted to make a case for Kiko Alonso too. He’s playing on a Pro-Bowl level, but Fitzpatrick has had less mental miscues. He’s been more consistent.
Something else that cannot be understated is Fitzpatrick’s leadership. For a franchise that is continuously in a state of culture change, building around a player like Fitzpatrick is an effective way to set a strong foundation.
Ultimately, I think Fitzpatrick will end up getting some sort of accolade this season. Maybe he’ll end up being a Pro Bowl participant or in the conversation for DROY.
The sky’s really the limit for him and if he misses out on some of that recognition, then there’s always next year for Pro-Bowl or All-Pro consideration. And just imagine Minkah Fitzpatrick in Year 2; that’ll be exciting in its own right. He’s only going to get better. Maybe we’ll be talking Hall of Fame potential a few years down the road.