2019 Recall: Steelers trade for Fitzpatrick, lose shootout in San Fran
Steel City Underground presents our 2019 Steelers Recall: a look back at Pittsburgh Steelers games and storylines from last season.
It was a wild week for the Pittsburgh Steelers between the dates of September 15th, their home opener against the Seattle Seahawks, and September 22nd, their third game, a road trip to face the San Francisco 49ers.
After heading to the sideline at halftime against the Seahawks, reports surfaced the next day that Ben Roethlisberger’s injury was far more serious than any had suspected. Big Ben was immediately placed on IR that Monday, his season over, while Pittsburgh promoted undrafted camp sensation Devlin Hodges to the active roster.
Hodges had just been signed to the practice squad in advance of the Seahawks game on September 10th, one day after the Steelers traded Joshua Dobbs to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a 2020 fifth round draft pick.
Hodges would become the backup to the previous backup turned starter, Mason Rudolph, who looked strong in his first NFL action of his career, finishing with a 92.4 QB rating against Seattle.
But that wasn’t the only news of the week. If Monday started off with a bang, Tuesday added a boom when the usually frugal Steelers dealt their 2020 first round draft pick in a package to acquire S Minkah Fitzpatrick from the Miami Dolphins.
Despite the rumors floating around early that Monday, no one actually thought the Steelers would pull the trigger, or be favorites, to land the second-year safety out of Alabama. Fitzpatrick was considered to be one of the top safeties taken in the 2018 NFL Draft, a real high prospect that drew some controversy only because of how the Steelers obtained him.
Some argued he “wasn’t worth it” – but they would soon see the same value that the Steelers front office did!
More moves were made through the week as Sean Davis would be placed on Injured Reserve, joining Roethlisberger with his season ended early too.
Then the Steelers made yet more moves, adding a former first round draft pick in QB Paxton Lynch, who was signed to their practice squad, and then trading with the Seahawks for TE Nick Vannett in exchange for a 2020 fifth round pick. (The same one Pittsburgh had obtained in the Dobbs trade to Jacksonville.)
Entering their Week 3 game against San Francisco, the Steelers looked like a different team. Fitzpatrick would play immediately and make a huge impact, forcing a fumble and picking off a Jimmy Garappolo pass.
T.J. Watt continued his reign of terror early in the season with a fumble recovery in a critical moment and a pick, scooping up the game’s first turnover. Watt quietly got to Garappolo twice too, while also forcing two more passes defensed.
Rookie Devin Bush led the Steelers defense with 11 combined tackles and also had the awareness to snag two lost balls, recovering each fumble for a San Francisco turnover.
It was an incredible surge by the underdog Steelers defense, but unfortunately, they couldn’t hold on for the W, despite a decent showing by Mason Rudolph, who was making his first-ever start. There were obvious quirks, but he often stood tall in the pocket. Even when pressure was present, Rudolph had found a way to not lose yards.
Rudolph’s two touchdown passes kept the Steelers in the game, but as the narrative would start to go for the season, the play-calling kept things tight to the vest – until the Steelers went up 20-17 in the fourth quarter off of Diontae Johnson’s first career touchdown reception, a 39-yard connection from the also first-time starter Rudolph.
In the end it would be 2018 Pro Bowl running back James Conner dooming the Steelers, giving up the ball at a critical moment in the game.
Conner’s costly fumble gave San Francisco the ball on their own 24-yard line and led to the 49ers’ game-winning touchdown, despite the Steelers defense forcing seven plays to make it happen.
A 3rd-and-1 QB sneak by Garappolo got the 49ers a first down, but a holding penalty set the back to 2nd-and-17 and 3rd-and-11 from the 14, when a Mark Barron defensive holding call set San Fran up with another new set of downs and the Garappolo five-yard game-winning pass to Dante Pettis a minute later.
The Steelers were unable to recover, with Mason Rudolph sacked, and fumbling on the ensuing series.
The Steelers would drop their third-straight game of the 2019 season by a final score of 24-20, despite forcing five 49ers turnovers.
