The Pittsburgh Steelers made headlines a few days ago when they announced that they had received corner Jalen Ramsey, tight end Jonnu Smith, and a 2027 seventh-round draft pick from the Miami Dolphins in exchange for star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round pick.
While forking over Fitzpatrick and a fifth-rounder was surely a steep price, I — a diehard Steelers fan — don’t have any real problem with the deal. Ramsey is still an elite corner on his day, and Jonnu Smith is an incredibly talented TE coming off a really good season. At the very least, it wasn’t nearly as egregious as what the Boston Red Sox gave up for Rafael Devers.
That said, it certainly begs the question of what would’ve gone down in Madden franchise mode. So, I fired up Madden 25, made a new franchise, put Minkah and a fifth-rounder on the trading block, and saw what offers came in.
What Do Teams Offer For Minkah Fitzpatrick In Madden 25?
Much to my surprise, the offers that came in for Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round draft pick weren’t nearly as enticing as what happened in real life. However, there were some standout offers.
In total, seven teams made an offer for the package that I proposed. The teams were as follows:
- Cleveland Browns
- San Francisco 49ers
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- New York Jets
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Rams
- Seattle Seahawks
Most trades were offering a so-so player and some higher draft picks. For instance, the 49ers offered young corner Renardo Green as well as a 2026 second-round pick and a 2026 fifth-round pick. Overall, not a bad deal, especially if Green can develop. But, the Steelers went with the “win now” approach with their trade, so I’ll stick to that philosophy.
The Browns were willing to part ways with star tight end David Njoku and a sixth and seventh-round pick for 2027 and 2026, respectively. But, with Pat Freiermuth still in the fold, I didn’t think this made our team that much better. Plus, in the simulations I did for the aftermath of the real Steelers-Dolphins trade, Jonnu Smith didn’t seem to get much burn.
Overall, the offers that stuck out to me the most were from the New York Jets, Los Angeles Rams, and the Seattle Seahawks.
- The Jets offered the Steelers wideout Garrett Wilson, a 2026 4th-round pick, and a 2026 6th-round pick.
- The Rams offered receiver Puka Nacua, a 2025 4th-round pick, and a 2027 7th-round pick.
- The Seahawks offered wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba and a 2027 6th-round pick
So, why were these deals more enticing? Well, because as we’ve determined in past articles, the Steelers lack a legitimate wide receiver option outside of the newly acquired D.K. Metcalf. And in the simulations we did in the aftermath of the real trade, it was obvious that Aaron Rodgers was going to need more than the rag-tag team of Calvin Austin, Ben Skowronek, and Roman Wilson.
Ultimately, I went with the Rams’ offer of Nacua. Then, I simulated the remainder of the season to see if I made the right decision.
The Deal Paid Off
Well, would you look at that: The deal was a good choice.
After making the deal ahead of Week 1, the Steelers’ offense became good enough to win games consistently. Ultimately, the team finished at 12-5. Rodgers had a solid season, throwing for close to 3,700 yards and completing 68% of his passes, whilst dishing out 33 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. Not bad for a one-year bridge QB.
On top of that, the Metcalf-Nacua duo was a powerhouse in the passing game. Nacua eclipsed 1,000 yards on the season, catching 10 TD passes. He actually had a better season than Metcalf, who caught 9 TDs and collected 986 yards, despite having three more catches.
The only place where the Steelers fell really short was with the running game: Starting back Jaylen Warren only mustered 753 yards on the ground all year with an average of 3.8 yards per carry. Rookie backup Kaleb Johnson proved to be the finisher, too, rushing for 10 TDs to Warren’s 7.
And how did the defense do in Minkah’s absence? Pretty good, actually!
Overall, Pittsburgh was the 8th-best in the NFL in points allowed, only conceding 391 all season. They finished 3rd-best in both interceptions and sacks, as well. They were a bit lacking when it came to passing yards allowed, but remained a top-10 team when it came to stuffing the rushing game.
Unfortunately, it didn’t translate into playoff success. In the Wild Card round against the surprisingly mediocre Kansas City Chiefs (who finished 9-8), the Steelers lost by a narrow 30-28 scoreline. So yeah, Mike Tomlin’s regular season winning streak is still alive. But the team has still failed to win a playoff game since 2017.
