The Pittsburgh Steelers surprised plenty of fans and pundits when they drafted safety Terrell Edmunds in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft. And while Edmunds has never really lived up to his draft stock, he’s started 60 games in four seasons and has returned to Pittsburgh after dipping his toes in free agency.
And now that he’s back, he’s confident he’s going to end up the starting strong safety again this season despite the team’s addition of Damontae Kazee.
There’s no doubt in my mind about the starter’s position,” Edmunds said. “I feel like it’s locked down, but we’re definitely going to be competing every day. That’s part of football. Every year you have to compete. But at the same time, I’m confident in myself. I’m going out there trying to be a leader.”
Given how loyal head coach Mike Tomlin is, I doubt Edmunds starting job is in any sort of jeopardy unless there’s an injury. There’s no doubt Kazee is a starter-quality player and I look for him to see plenty of the field in sub-packages as a sort of hybrid cornerback/safety. Nevertheless, Edmunds played good football in the second half of the 2021 season and his run-stopping is going to be in demand.