Longtime Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds indicates he’s leaving team via free agency

One of the most reliable and ubiquitous members of the Pittsburgh Steelers in recent seasons indicated his tenure with the team has come to an end.

A post to the Twitter account of safety Terrell Edmunds on Thursday read like a farewell to the organization and city he has called home since being the Steelers’ first-round draft pick in 2018. An unrestricted free agent on a team that has two veteran starting safeties signed for 2023, it has been expected Edmunds would be moving on.

“Thank you Pittsburgh for making my dreams come to reality!” Edmunds’ post read. “You will forever be a part of me and my journey! I’m thankful for all of my coaches, teammates and every fan supporting! To my bruddas y’all kno how we rockin, it’s gonna be luv until the wheels fall off.”

Thank you Pittsburgh for making my dreams come to reality! You will forever be apart of me and my journey! I’m thankful for all of my coaches, teammates and every fan supporting! To my bruddas y’all kno how we rockin, it’s gonna be luv until the wheels fall off ???????????? #ManTime???????? pic.twitter.com/nTujRQ4Oej

— Terrell Edmunds (@rell_island6) March 23, 2023

Edmunds has appeared in 79 of the Steelers’ 82 regular-season games (and both of their playoff games) since being drafted. In that time, only defensive captain Cameron Heyward (82) has appeared in more games for the Steelers.

Edmunds, who turned 26 in January, started all but four of the games he’d played — and he rarely left the field on defense when he did play. He has played more than 90% of the Steelers’ defensive snaps since 2018 and also was a regular on special teams.

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Edmunds has started at strong safety since early 2019, providing a more in-the-box complement to All-Pro free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

This past season, according to Pro Football Focus, 322 of Edmunds’ 886 defensive snaps played were akin to being a hybrid linebacker, with 254 featuring him lined up at free safety and 195 in coverage in the slot. Edmunds had 70 tackles (41 solo, three for loss), two sacks and five passes defended. But for the third time in five NFL seasons, he had no interceptions.

With Fitzpatrick in the first season of a four-year, $73 million extension, and the Steelers recently re-signing playmaking safety Damontae Kazee, Edmunds was expendable.

He gets some heat because of where he was drafted -- admittedly, he's no All Pro -- but let's show some respect for Terrell Edmunds, a 5-year, every-down player for the Steelers... https://t.co/AyGgS0EBXw

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) October 23, 2022

Edmunds last season remained on the free-agent market for almost six weeks before the Steelers’ re-signed him for $2.537 million. The previous spring, the Steelers declined a fifth-year option on Edmunds that would have paid him $6.75 million in 2022.

Edmunds’ younger brother — Tremaine, a linebacker — signed a $72 million contract with the Chicago Bears last week. Edmunds’ older brother, Trey, was Terrell’s Steelers teammate for parts of four seasons as a backup running back and special teamer.

In dire need of a safety in April 2018, the Steelers took Terrell Edmunds with the 28th overall draft pick. Most draft services — including the league’s official website — had rated him as a mid-round selection.

Edmunds’ high draft pedigree often left fans viewing him as a disappointment despite steady play. Among the seven picks to go directly after him, two AFC North rivals drafted All-Pro offensive players: quarterback Lamar Jackson to the Baltimore Ravens and running back Nick Chubb to the Cleveland Browns.

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