After the Oklahoma City Thunder, the youngest team in the NBA this year, became the second-youngest team ever to win a championship, GM Sam Presti said, "We draft people, not basketball players." I thought of that statement when the news broke that Minkah Fitzpatrick had been traded to the Dolphins for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith.
There are numerous accounts of Minkah being an exceptional individual with an outstanding football IQ. But in the end, those qualities never brought the Steelers a playoff win in his tenure. Forget the eight-year playoff winless streak; this franchise has had 14 seasons come and go since it last made a Super Bowl. Maybe urgency in a player's leadership expression is needed. Quiet intelligence and professionalism didn't work out for Barry Sanders, either.
The Steelers need something more.