Minkah Fitzpatrick responds to critics of 'low hit' on Nick Chubb

Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick had the chance to respond on Thursday to those blaming him for the season-ending injury to Browns running back Nick Chubb on Monday night.

The former Alabama star told reporters that he wouldn’t do anything differently, but that he’s also hoping for a speedy recovery for the running back.

“I would say, one: they’ve never tackled Nick Chubb before if they’re telling me to go high,” Fitzpatrick said, via James Palmer. “Two: What I seen was it opened up, it’s goal line. I didn’t see anybody on him. I made the decision as soon as I seen the hole open up and him in the hole to go low.

“You can tell me how to tackle him low but it’s a fast game. It’s a game (where) you make decisions in milliseconds. Can’t really control what happens after you choose to make your decision. I already chose to go low. Somebody got on his back when I was going low, and what happened happened.”

“There’s nothing I really would do differently,” he added. “Again, like I said earlier, it’s very unfortunate. Nick Chubb’s a great player. He makes the game a lot better when he’s playing. Just hope for a speedy recovery.”

Former Steelers defender and current ESPN analyst Ryan Clark defended Fitzpatrick after the hit.

“If a defender goes high and a player gets concussed he’s dirty!” Clark shared on X. “If a defender goes low and a player gets a lower extremity injury he’s dirty. Where can he hit a runner then y’all? I mean sheesh. The growing softness of this game and the sensitivity of those who watch it saddens me.”

Chubb facing multiple surgeries in recovery process

According to NFL insider Josina Anderson, Chubb will likely need two surgeries to address the multitude of knee injuries that occurred during the Browns’ Monday night loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“I’m told there were initial discussions of #Browns RB Nick Chubb potentially needing 2 surgeries to address his injuries following MNF in Pittsburgh—with the 1st surgery coming w/i the next 7-10 days & the 2nd occurring several weeks after, per source. This is preliminary talk,” wrote Anderson via X.

Anderson also noted that added to the list of injuries Chubb suffered was damage to the meniscus in his knee.

Following the news that Chubb would miss the remainder of the season, the Browns went out and signed a familiar face in Kareem Hunt. The Chiefs selected Hunt in the third round of the 2017 draft. He led the NFL in rushing his rookie season. The Browns then signed him in 2019. Hunt was a free agent after requesting a trade from the Browns in the 2022 season. He had 468 yards on 123 carries last season.

On3’s Justin Rudolph contributed to this report.