Two incredible moments happened within minutes of one another for Pittsburgh Steelers fans who were watching last night’s 2018 NFL Draft. Day one of the draft is always the most star-studded, with all first round selections being made that evening.

But the suspense of who would be selected with the Steelers first round pick wasn’t what made the night initially special: it was seeing Ryan Shazier walk to the podium to announce the pick.

One of the great moments in #NFLDraft history.

Ryan Shazier walks onto the stage and announces the Steelers' pick. pic.twitter.com/1ZCPlbC7wI

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) April 27, 2018

Seeing Ryan walk hit everyone’s emotions, but those same feeling would go into overdrive when the recovering linebacker spoke the name of the team’s latest addition: Terrell Edmunds.

Sentiments ranged from the usual gamut of responses. Some fans called Edmunds an “awesome pick” while others criticized it as a “reach” for a “need”.

What those cynics on the negative side of the equation don’t seem to realize is what that “need” actually is. The Steelers already signed safety Morgan Burnett in free agency to replace Mike Mitchell, and have to be three-year starter Sean Davis progressing along.

What Edmunds represents is something else entirely: Ryan Shazier’s replacement.

That may seem like a stretch, but how often were those same critics begging for the Steelers to switch Shazier from the linebacker position to safety?

That’s the “aha” moment when you begin to break down Edmund’s potential role. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has already hinted at Edmund’s versatility on the field:

He was a really fun evaluation for me personally. Anything that you can imagine him doing, you saw him do at Virginia Tech’s defensive tape within Coach Bud Foster’s scheme.

You saw him play free. You saw him play strong. You saw him play deep middle. You saw him play half field. You saw him play sub-package linebacker in there alongside his brother.

That versatility was exciting.

We were just talking here the other day about the specialization of ball and things that you’re able to do with sub-packages. You’re not speculating in that evaluation. You saw him do a number of things that will be on the menu for him. We got a sharp, young, versatile guy who’s a very good communicator that plays with physicality.

Quite simply, he checked all the boxes for us.

The biggest takeaway here? “He checked all of the boxes.” Edmunds is listed as a safety and appears to provide depth behind Burnett and Davis, yet, I’d argue he’s going to be a different player entirely.

Terrell Edmunds describes the frantic moment he got the call from the #Steelers…in the bathroom pic.twitter.com/ORIHWwMgAS

— Kevin Boilard (@KevinBoilard) April 27, 2018

In recent years the Steelers have slowly changed their scheme from their traditional 3-4 base to primarily playing a hybrid deviation of it. Some may say it’s a nickel package, based on having an extra defensive back on the field, but ultimately the Steelers are using two defensive linemen (rather than three) and often dropping their outside linebackers (Bud Dupree, T.J. Watt) into coverage. This has opened the floodgates for DE Cameron Heyward to lead the team in sacks, and for a slot corner specialist such as Mike Hilton, to earn AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

That’s where Edmunds may see his role defined. It’s no secret that the team has been seeking out a “moneybacker” style player, that is, an athlete that can mascarade as both a linebacker and a safety. In fact, that’s why Shazier had been often compared with the other position. Pittsburgh had their eyes on safeties who could’ve fit that scheme in last year’s draft but missed out on names such as Budda Baker, Jabrill Peppers, and Obi Melifonwu before taking Edmunds with the 28th overall selection this year.

Of course, everyone feels the Steelers had a defined need to replace Shazier by taking an inside linebacker. The top prospects at that position, Terrell’s brother Tremaine Edmunds, Leighton Vander Esch, and Rashaan Evans were all off of the board by the time the Pittsburgh picked.

But does that really change the Terrell Edmunds pick? Could it be that was the Steelers choice all along?

Let’s compare some measurables of those linebackers to Terrell Edmunds based on stats from MockDraftable.com (and using the overall “athlete” comparison).

Terrell Edmunds

 

 

Tremaine Edmunds

 

Leighton Vander Esch

 

Rashaan Evans

 

Roquan Smith

And then of course, the ultimate benchmark to compare with…

Ryan Shazier

 

Side-By-Side Comparison

Measurable	Shazier	Evans	LVE	Smith	Tremaine	Terrell
Height	6′ 1″	6′ 1⅞”	6′ 4¼”	6′ 0⅞”	6′ 4½”	6′ 0½”
Weight	237 lbs	232 lbs	256 lbs	236 lbs	253 lbs	217 lbs
Wingspan		77¼”	81⅛”	77″	83″	79″
Arm Length	32⅜”	32¼”	33⅞”	32″	34½”	32¾”
Hand Size	10″	10″	9¾”	10″	9⅜”	10½”
40 Yard Dash	4.38s		4.65s	4.51s	4.54s	4.47s
Vertical Jump	42″	30″	39½”			41½”
Broad Jump	130″	116″	124″		117″	134″
3-Cone Drill	6.91s	6.95s	6.88s
20 Yard Shuttle	4.21s	4.36s	4.15s
60 Yard Shuttle			11.57s
Bench Press	25 reps		20 reps		19 reps
10 Yard Split	1.56s*
20 Yard Split	2.58s*

As you can see, Terrell isn’t far off from the pick everyone wanted: Rashaan Evans or even the consensus top inside linebacker prospect, Roquan Smith. In fact, he’s better.

He’s also not quite in the same size category of Leighton Vander Esch (LVE) or his brother, Tremaine, but Terrell is far more athletic than either player and when compared with Evans, blows several of his numbers out of the water. He even bests those compared to the safety position as well:

Again in terms of athleticism for newest #Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds, he's among the very best in the draft class.

His 138.9 SPARQ score makes him a 97.2% athlete compared to #NFL safeties. Better than notable names like Justin Reid and Derwin James #NFLDraft #SteelersDraft pic.twitter.com/WozwB7tofg

— Tommy Jaggi (@TommyJaggi) April 27, 2018

What this means for the Steelers is a player who could add a little more size to his frame while having the ability to hang with opponents in pass coverage.

And did I mention that Terrell is a sure tackler? (Something sorely lacking from the team in previous years!)

The Steelers select Terrell Edmunds, who missed only 5 tackles across 585 snaps in 2017 #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/O2XTP33Vau

— PFF (@PFF) April 27, 2018

The Big Picture

In previous drafts, the Steelers were looking for a player like Edmunds. They also have a need to replace Ryan Shazier.

Dare I say they may have gotten both, and did so when no one else was looking?

In 2017, defensive coordinator Keith Butler moved CB William Gay into a similar role, where the defensive back came on the field in dime sub-packages and often covered a tight end. The Steelers also said goodbye to long-time linebacker Lawrence Timmons, because they felt he wasn’t a three-down player, and often took Vince Williams off of the field in obvious passing situations.

That’s where the team suffered following Shazier’s spinal injury. They had difficulty covering sideline-to-sideline in a way that Shazier’s speed made up for. They had trouble defending the middle of the field from the pass.

And the biggest factor: they had trouble defending Rob Gronkowski.

I believe the Gronk factor to be the biggest determining one in Edmund’s selection. The defense has had their issues with covering tight ends in the past, and utilizing Gay along with Shazier helped cover for the deficiency last season, that is until Shazier went down. With versatile players who can both start at safety in Burnett and Davis, Edmunds represents the ability to remove Vince Williams or even free agent acquisition Jon Bostic on passing downs, without the risk of a chess match scenario where the opponent instead runs the ball against a lesser defender (Gay) or passes against those linebackers who are weaker in pass coverage.

Make no mistake about it, this pick is a pick for now, and to work toward the Steelers goal of winning another Lombardi trophy.