Terrell Edmunds: More Than Just Another Strong Safety

Hello fellow members! AskQuestionsLater here yet again, bringing you all my personal take on an ongoing issue. Given the fact that the draft ended well over a week ago, many fans still have way too many unanswered questions about their respective picks. For SteelersNation, no one pick brings more ire and confusion than Terrell Edmunds, a Safety from Virginia Tech University. While some, while surprised, were satisfied with the pick, others were not so forgiving.



"A wasted pick."


"Biggest reach of the draft."


"Harold Landry and Josh Jackson were right there!!! Why??!!!"


Even some comments I recently had the displeasure of reading on Twitter shortly thereafter;


"Kevin Colbert needs to retire. This draft sucks!!!!"


"This is why Tomlin needs to be fired. He has zero clue on how to build a team. Z-E-R-O!!"


Here is my personal favorite.


"Looks like the New England Patriots will tie us in Super Bowls. Nice going Tomlin!! Just give them our own six why don't you. #FMTI"


*** AskQuestionsLater's reaction ***






Before we collectively state this draft stinks based on one pick. Before we state this draft stinks based on the position of the player. Most importantly, before we state this draft stinks based on the players abilities, I need to wrestle some of these nihilistic, short-sighted views back down to Earth. For this thread, to ensure that no stone is left unturned, we need to go back to what caused the selection of Terrell Edmunds and what type of role he will play in the future. To that end, we need to go back to when the Steelers began employing and deploying the dime defense under Keith Butler; December 20th, 2015 against the eventual Super Bowl Champion Denver Broncos.



Dropping "Dimes" But Not In Its Prime:



On December 20th, 2015, a pivotal AFC bout was to take place at Heinz Field. The 10-3 Denver Broncos would do battle against the 8-5 Pittsburgh Steelers. As Pittsburgh could not afford any more losses at this point, this game was do or die. To complicate matters, the legendary "No Fly Zone" set up base at the "Ketchup Bottle", determined to ground Pittsburgh's powerful air assualt. Throughout the first half, they succeeded; only a meager 13 points against Denver's 27. Pittsburgh's defense seemed to have no answer for Denver's offense whatsoever. However, in the second half, Keith Butler deployed a defensive sub package formation that would become the hallmark of the Steelers for the future in the dime defense.








Recall back that, during the 2015 NFL Draft, then second round pick Senquez Golson was mainly thought of as a mere slot cornerback due to his height. Well, that was only 50% of the reasoning for it. Turns out that Senquez was supposed to free up William Gay when that time was right to have him be utilized as the "Dime 'Backer" and not Will Allen. Sadly, due to Golson's inability to stay on the field, this ideal defense would not take shape, at least entirely. However, even in an imcomplete state, this new defense allowed Pittsburgh to prevent Denver from putting points on the scoreboard ever again from the remainder of the game; Big Ben and the offense taking care of the "No Fly Zone" as Pittsburgh surged to a 21 point comeback to achieve victory 34-27; keeping their playoff hopes alive and said win being more fuel for the playoff run. Sadly... we all know what ended up transpiring in the AFC Divisional Round. Despite this, the Steelers had unearthed a new form of defense for the team. As such, Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin set out in the 2016 NFL Offseason to build upon the limited success they have had with it during the 2015 campaign.



The First Step Towards The Next Generation:



Solution number one during the 2016 NFL Draft came in the form of a hybrid defensive back player from the University of Maryland by the name of Sean Davis. The hope was that, should Senquez Golson be healthy, the defense could incorperate more of the Dime. Again though, Senquez's season was wiped out yet again by an injury. Once again, and, as with last season, the Dime defense remained incomplete. As with the latter portion of 2015, the 2016 season saw extensive usage of the dime defense; its disappearence after the "Miami Meltdown", "Brady's Buzzsaw" and the "Dallas Debacle", all in chornological order. After that horrific Dallas showcasing, the dime defense was not seen nor heard from again; the nickel defense being used in its place instead. While 2016 saw the Steelers being brutally beaten in the AFC Championship Game, the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft appeared to give Pittsburgh the "Perfect Solution" towards the issues upon completing the Dime Defense project; a Safety from the University of Conneticuit by the name of Obi Melifonwu; 3SigmaAthlelte's newest "Transcendent" athletic prodigy. However, one major issue; Jarvis Jones needed replaced and badly. Instead, with that in mind, Pittsburgh lost its chance to fully insert the dime and would have to wait yet again. However, the Steelers would end up acquring the brother of the most dominating defensive player in the NFL in Trent Jordan Watt; Linebacker from the University of Wisconsin. Much like 2016, Pittsburgh forged ahead one last time into 2017 seeing if their incomplete variant of the Dime Defense would carry them far into the playoffs yet again.




Big Cats On The Prowl. The Time Is Now:




While the Steelers were attempting to figure out their Dime woes to combat the New England Patriots, an old AFC Central adversary was gearing up for its "Road To Relavence" tour. As was the Steelers attempting to implement the dime since 2015, the Jacksonville Jaguars were attempting to field a defense of its own; one that could trade blows with any offense without using the likes of the dime but rather sheer ferocity and brute force. With the acquisitions of the likes of Calais Campbell, A.J. Bouye and Tashaun Gipson, the Jaguars were ready to for the AFC to hear the return of its thunderous "Battle Cry", one that would resonate throughout the AFC to capture the attention of the conferences biggest giants in both New England and Pittsburgh. Jacksonville would be able to put their three year long developed defense against Pittsburgh's on October 8th, 2017. On this day, Pittsburgh met its match as Jacksonville steamrolled the Steelers 30-9. After that humiliating defeat, Pittsburgh attempted to continue the usage of the dime once more but instead opted for the nickel as there was still doubt on its overall efffectivness. However, on December 7th, 2017, everything changed.



Ryan Shazier was not just out for the remainder of the 2017 Season, he was out indefinitely until further notice.



Without Ryan, the Steelers were ill-equipped to handle the devastating loss. While Pittsburgh would end up capturing the number two seed in the AFC, they had to confront their old AFC Central Arch Nemesis once more. However, just like last time and, once again, on this day;



Pittsburgh met its match yet again.



Frustrated and irate about the loss, both Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert collectively realized that the only way to truly implement the dime defense is to have a true multi role defensive back. One that could come in immediatley and supplant the "Dime 'Backer" role perfectly but also one that could easily possess enough speed to become either a Free Safety or a Strong Safety. Furthermore, and most importantly, unlike the last time, Pittsburgh would also need to have a reliable contingency plan should their "Primary Chess Piece" be missing in action as they were unprepared with the loss of Ryan Shazier. Furthermore, a new teacher would be needed to guide this new evolution of the Pittsbugh defense; a teacher who was a stern yet firm believer in the principles, fundementals and basics of not only playing defensive back but also tackling. The 2018 NFL Draft had featured only but a handful of these types of talents unlike the 2017 class. Even more daunting was that, unlike 2017, there was no "transcendent athletic talent" as there was in Obi Melifonwu, the "Apex Dime 'Backer". One shining beacon of hope did lay in the darkness however. Unlike the 2016 season in where there was a glaring weakness along the front seven, this season did not provide as much of an issue sans the loss of Ryan Shazier. Considering that "replacing" Ryan Shazier was going to be impossible anyway, this gave both Colbert and Tomlin the ulitmate chance to acquire their "Dime 'Backer". Furthermore, they had their "Teacher" by the name of Tom Bradley, a known stickler throughout the NCAA World for his persistence upon the basics, priniciples and fundmentals of both playing the defensive back position and tackling. On April 26th, 2018, the Steelers made their decision; Terrell Edmunds, a Safety from Virginia Tech University, will be the archetype to lead the new age and herald the completion of the dime defense. Unlike the last time as well, Colbert enacted on a contingency plan in the form of Marcus Allen in the fifth round; an explosive box safety who could heed the call to action should anything happen to Mr. Edmunds. With the 2018 NFL Draft in the rearview mirror, now is the time for that vision to be realized.


For that matter, it is time to undertsand why Terrell Edmunds not only represents the completion of the evolution of the Steelers but also the completion of Tomlin's ideal defense; one that can be violent, aggressive and most importantly, unpredictable.




Terrell Edmunds: Prelude Towards Finding Those "Dimes":



From 2015 until now, the one aspect that has been holding the Steelers back is their inability to stop tight ends. During the LeBeau years, this was not much of an issue. Fast forward to today and the issue has now become a far too reoccurinng problem. Namely though, one person:



Robert Gronkowski.



The mere mention of this person's name has often brought forth fear and panic among opposing NFL Teams and fanbases; rightfully so for both cases. Since his arrival in 2010, there is yet to be any form of defense, nevermind scheme, that is capable of stopping or even slowing down this "Force of Nature". Not "Sacksonville". Not the "No Fly Zone". No one. Rob Gronkowski is the classic example of what happens in an intermitent point in time within a medium that a transition occurs towards something new comes across a "mega hit" that seems not only unbeatable within its realm but also infallible. Despite his injury prone past due to his violent style of play, Rob Gronkowski is still the NFL's "Ultimate Anamoly" as there does not seem to be any end to his "Reign of Violent Terror". Of his favorite torture victims, the Steelers have always been at the top of his list. Do not believe me? Here is his statistics, year by year, since 2010 upon his arrival near the Three Rivers. They are as follows;



2010: Five catches on five targets for 72 yards and three touchdowns.


2011: Seven catches on nine targets for 94 yards.


2013: Nine catches on ten targets for 143 yards and one touchdown.


2015: Five catches on eight targets for 94 yards and three touchdowns.


2016: Four catches on four targets for 93 yards and one touchdown.


2017: Nine catches on twelve targets for 158 yards.



Givien the fact that these are just his base numbers upon each individual game, let us add them all up shall me?



Total: 39 catches on 48 targets for 654 yards and eight touchdowns.



Especially after what we witnessed after last season, I think it is safe to say that something had to be done about this; hence the Terrell Edmunds pick and what he means moving foward.




All Set In Stone. Terrell's "Dime Dropping" Potential Unleashed:



Before we dive into how Terrell will not improve Keith Butler's Dime Defense but also drastically increase Pittsburgh's chances this time around against New England and other tight end talented teams, more specifically Rob Gronkowski, I would like to turn your attention towards his athletic capabilities. They are as shown below:







Here is something even more impressive:








Now, of the two safeties capapble of functioning as a "multi role" safety, only Derwin James and Terrell Edmunds were considered the best of the best; James especially. Some people, such as myself, even thought that, coming out of college, Derwin James has far more potential than even Jalen Ramsey, arguably the best cornerback in the league today and one of the few corners capable of limiting Antonio's onslaught upon defensive backfields. More over to the point though, Derwin James, while special, does not possess the athletic talent quite like Terrell Edmunds; Edmunds higher Nike pSPARQ score showcasing him to be the superior athlete over James and possibly a good reason why Colbert did not elect to unlock the "time capsule" to attempt to re enact another "Troy Polamalu" with the same team. While Derwin was far more consistent in handling multiple roles, Terrell was not too far behind. His issue was his shoulder injury that cost him dearly and limited his overall effectiveness. Now, why am I mentioning his athletic capabilities now? It takes a very unique and special skillset to not only play just as a "multi role" defensive back in the dime defense but also to have the athletic capabilities to handle the "multi arrary" of roles. To further understand the forthcoming "Dime" Defense in 2018, here is a simplistic picture on how the "Dime" Defense would look like;







As you can see, the "Dime" Defense in its "traditional" state allocates an additional defensive back in trade for one linebacker. Given the fact that sub package football has become the "new normal" for NFL offenses, simply relying on that additional corner means another weakness. Enter the "Hybrid Defensive Back". Players like Mark Barron or Jaquaski Taritt would fit this mold. For Pittsburgh, someone like William Gay, who was a stop gap option, was incapable of properly filling this void; yet another reason for his departure after the 2017 season. However, due to this new mold of defensive players, we can now add Terrell Edmunds into the fold as well. Let us look at the "Dime" from a more modern, contextualized standpoint.







Notice the two "Nickel Backs". In Pittsburgh's scheme, more than likely, both Mike Hilton and Terrell Edmunds would be these players; slot duty being Mike's calling and tight end coverage duty for Edmunds. With these factors now in place, let us create a "Dime" Defense within the current structure via an example shall we?



Steelers "Dime" Defense look for 2018. Example one.


Strongside Defensive End: Bud Dupree/Anthony Chickillo


3 Tech: Cameron Heyward/Tyson Alualu


3 Tech: Stephon Tuitt/Javon Hargrave


Weakside Defensive End: T.J. Watt/Keion Adams


Linebacker: Vince Williams/John Bostic


"Dime 'Backer" (Nickel Back #2): Terrell Edmunds/Marcus Allen


Left Outside Corner: Joe Haden/Cameron Sutton


Right Outside Corner: Artie Burns/Brian Allen


Slot Cornerback (Nickel Back #1): Mike Hilton/Cameron Sutton


Free Safety: Sean Davis/Nat Berhe


Strong Safety: Morgan Burnett/Marcus Allen





Notice how Terrell and Mike are the two "Nickels" in the "Dime". As stated before, Mike Hilton is capable of slot duties while Terrell can handle tight ends. However, keep in mind that, unlike a traditional safety, a "Dime 'Backer" really has no official position. He is not stationary within one section of the field but being a pseudo form of "omnipresence". Therefore, the "Dime 'Backers" capabilities on the field are directly tied to his athletic abilities, football IQ, play recognition and open field tackling; all of which Terrell Edmunds carries. This role, for his rookie season, is where Terrell can not only start earning snaps early but also showcase to the fanbase as towards why he was the Steelers first pick. Having not just a coverage option but a physical presence within the defensive with the unpredictability to account for is why Terrell Edmunds will be able to succeed in his early stages in his young NFL life. Sure, are there going to be challenges that lie ahead? Oh without question. For a more in-depth insight as to what Mr. Edmunds can look forward to among the upper echeleon of NFL Tight Ends and NFL Running Backs, they are as follows;


NFL Preseason:


Week 1: Zach Ertz/Dallas Goedert


Week 2: Jimmy Graham/Lance Kendricks


Week 3 (Tune Up Game): Delanie Walker/Phillip Supernaw




NFL Regular Season:



Week 1: David Njoku


Week 2: *** Official Litmus Exam One *** Travis Kelce


Week 3: O.J. Howard (Ascending Player)


Week 4: *** Rookie Battle *** Hayden Hurst


Week 6: *** Litmus Test One *** Tyler Eifert


Week 7: David Njoku


Week 8: *** Rookie Rematch *** Hayden Hurst


Week 9: *** Litmus Test Two Greg Olsen


Week 12: *** Litmus Test Three *** Hunter Henry


Week 14: *** Official Litmus Exam Two ***

Rob Gronkowski


Week 15: Coby Fleener


Week 16: Tyler Eifert




However, we also cannot ignore the aspect of the run defense; our undoing in the 2017 season. As such, let us take a look ahead towards the opponents Terrell will face in the upcoming 2018 season shall we?


NFL Preseason:



Week 1: Jay Ajayi


Week 2: Ty Montgomery/Jamal Williams/Aaron Jones


Week 3 (Tune Up Game): Derrick Henry/Dion Lewis



NFL Season:


Week 2: *** Litmus Test One *** Kareem Hunt


Week 3: *** Rookie Battle *** Ronald Jones


Week 4: Alex Collins


Week 5: *** Litmus Test Two *** Devonte Freeman


Week 6: Joe Mixon/Giovanni Bernard


Week 9: *** Litmus Test Three *** Christian McCaffery


Week 10: *** Official Litmus Exam One ***

Leonard Fournette


Week 14: *** Litmus Test Four *** Melvin Gordon


Week 15: *** Official Litmus Exam Two ***

Alvin Kamara






Among the sixteen games this season, Terrell will have eleven total shots to prove himself within the tight end aspect and ten total shots within the running backs aspects. Of those eleven among tight ends, three "Litmus Tests" and two "Official Litmus Exams" will see just how far Terrell has come since his days at OTA's. This is also accounting for the ten running backs as well; four "Litmus Tests" and two "Official Litmus Exams" the same. This is quite the daunting task but it does, in itself, bring up yet another aspect as to why Colbert selected a hybrid player this time around. Last season, the Steelers had played against the same number of high quality tight ends and a similar number of running backs. Sans Rob Gronkowski and Leonard Fournette, the Steelers held up well. That being said, "well" clearly is not good enough anymore as Terrell will have to prove himself and Colbert right that he is in fact the "missing nickel" to the "Dime". This leads me towards the highlight of this thread.



Road To LIII. The Ascension Towards The Stairway Begins Now:



With the completion of the dime defense and a contingency plan in place, the Steelers, to me, are far more equipped to handle themselves against not only opposing tight ends but also the powerful and violent rushing attacks of the NFL. Yes, the loss of Ryan Shazier will be felt for certain. Yes, the "Dime" Defense cannot be the only methods of attacking opposing offenses. Most importantly though, yes, there is quite a bit of assumption being placated upon the success of Terrell Edmunds and how he fares during his first trial by fire.



That all being said, both Mike Tomlin and Keith Butler do not have to rely on Terrell 100% of the time. Only when his name is called upon. This gives Terrell time to adjust to the overall NFL scope of the game. The speed. Its dynamics. How "Short Term Memory Loss" is quite the powerful piece of mental fortitude. Most importantly, the perseverance to continue onwards in spite of the shortcomings. In short?



Terrell Edmunds is not just some mere football player to complete a mere defensive alignment nor should he be viewed as such. What Terrell Edmunds should be viewed upon is him being one of the final stepping stones towards the ulitmate prize. The missing stepping stone required to ascend further towards the "Stairway that leads to Seven". That is why Terrell Edmunds was not a reach. That is why Terrell Edmunds was the right player to select with the first pick.



Most of all, that is why Terrell Edmunds will likely be a main focal point heading into the 2018 NFL Season and the 2018 NFL Playoffs as well.




Now, before I conclude, I do understand that there are still some unanswered questions left. To that end, let us wrap this thread up and knock those concerns out of the park before we conclude.



Counter-argument one: Pittsburgh could have traded back and still nabbed Terrell. Why didn't they?!



Well, this argument is the primal example of a contradiction. To "assume" that Terrell would have been available by pick 60 would be the equivalent to "assume" T.J. Watt would have been available by pick 62 in the 2017 Draft; neither of which would have been possible. Bear in mind that the likes of teams such asIndianapolis and Baltimore would have likely either selected or traded up for either. Even under the assumption of acquring more picks, there is far too strong a possibility that other teams would accept whatever picks we had should a trade have gone down. Furthermore, it is no secret that Pittsburgh has not traded back, in a draft, since 1967. That is a grand total of 51 years. Pittsburgh treats first round picks like gold; way too valuable a resource to trade way. That being said, do not expect them to trade their first pick anytime soon.



Counter-argument two: "Players like Harold Landry, Lamar Jackson, Josh Jackson, Justin Reid and even Derrius Guice were available! Why were they not considered?!"


Just because these "highly rated players" were available does not mean Pittsburgh is likely to draft any of them. For one, no pass rusher was brought in for a Pre Draft Visit; Bud's fifth year option also being the final nail in the coffin on that notion. That being said, we can easily dismiss the likes of Harold Landry or any other related pass rusher. Regarding Josh Jackson same vein but a different story. While the Steelers did bring in cornerback prospects in for Pre Draft Visitations, Josh Jackson was not among them. Realisitically speaking, only Jaire Alexander would have likely been an option had he not been a top 20 selection since both Colbert and Tomlin were at the Univeristy of Louisville's Pro Day. As such and, much like Landry, Jackson was an easy scratch. To end the defensive side for Mr. Reid, this is likely due to the fact that we already have a "Justin Reid" in the form of Sean Davis. Both were highly athletic coming out of college yet both had tackling issues as well. Given the major focus this offseason was to shore up tackling, I now see why Justin Reid was not within the dicusssion for the first pick as attempting to right the ship on a rookie is far more strenous and taxing than a veteran player like Davis. Furthermore, while Reid would likely become the team's newest Free Safety, now we have one too many Free Safeties and not enough "multi role" ones.



For the likes of Lamar Jackson, this again contradicts the very same notion we heard months prior leading up to the draft. "Who is going to replace Ben?" While the option of Lamar Jackson was tantilizing enough, need I remind those that building around Lamar Jackson has a lot more to do with building upon the offense's skills and not his. What this means is that you cannot build an offense around Lamar Jackson in the conventional sense. The offense itself has to be built around him. If not, he is going to falter hard; all the more reason that Baltimore being "praised" for the pick makes no sense to me as a team like Jacksonville having Lamar would have casued immense problems. Finally, for Derrius Guice, how is Derrius going to limit Rob Gronkowski's effectivness? Sure, the Steelers can run down the clock but that only delays the inevitable considering we still would not have the personnel to combat and limit Rob's destructive abilities.



Again, to clarify, these players are not bad picks. These players simply do not match up towards what the Steelers needed to acquire in Round One. In addition, none of these players would match up towards the main focus of the offseason no less within the defensive unit; neutralizing tight ends/power run games and tackling.



Counter-argument three: "We had the draft capital to trade up for someone! Why didn't we?"



We tried to do that to acquire Rashaan Evans. However, the closest trading partner were the Detriot Lions. That being said, there was no guarantee as to how much we would have to give up to move up eight spots. Even in the event we moved up eight spots, here are the likely trade scenario's that would have transpired to acquire Rashaan.



Scenario Number One:



Detriot gets picks 28, 60 and 79.



Pittsburgh gets pick 20 and pick 82.



Issue Number One: No second rounder just after dealing away Martavis Bryant is a massive issue. The most horrific issue about this trade is that Pittsburgh does not acquire Mason Rudolph either. Add the fact that we still will not have a deep threat option and this trade is not very good at all.



Scenario Number Two:


Detriot gets pick 28, the 2019 Second Rounder, pick 60 and pick 92



Pittsburgh gets pick 20, a 2019 third rounder and pick 82.



Issue 2: Take everything I just stated and double that. No second round pick in 2019, a year in which the likes of Joe Haden (massive cap hit) and Le'Veon Bell (obivious reasons) will need replaced? No thanks.



Scenario 3:



Detroit gets pick 28, the 2019 first rounder and pick 79



Pittsburgh gets pick 20, the 2019 second rounder, pick 82 and pick 114.



Issue three: The big one; my biggest issue no less. Heck. No. Dealing away your first pick to move up a measly eight spots is bad enough. Mortgage the future on one player for one position?








Counter argument four: "Well, what if Terrell gets injured this year? What will be the excuse then?"



Simple. None.



As stated previously, Colbert ensured that another mishap in not having a contingency plan for a key position a la Ryan Shazier would not happen again; hence the selection of Marcus Allen in the fifth round. Considering he is best deployed near the line of scrimmage anyway, the Steelers will not miss much a beat when it comes to him serving as the "Dime 'Backer". He is explosive enough to attack downhill on run downs and can cover tight ends and running back on short to intermediate routes in the passing game. Just do not ask Marcus to cover single high. He can cover... just not in the same vein that Edmunds can.




Counter-argument five: "There is no guarantee that Terrell will pan out! If he does not, what then?"






Every prospect ever applies to this. The NFL Draft is a crapshoot. Even among the roughly 7% of players who receive a First Round Grade from the NFL Draft Advisory Board, their futures are not guaranteed either. For the answer towards the second part of this counter argument, refer towards the response of the fourth.



Counter argument six: "He was heavily injured in college! He has a higher chance of getting injured again!"







Players like C.J. Mosley, Myles Jack, Jordan Phillips, Jaylon Smith, Ryan Rymcyzk and even Pittsburgh's own Stephon Tuitt have dispelled this notion many times over. If anything, such an "issue" among these prospects is to often showcase grit, dedication and perseverance; all admirable tratis. Given the fact that these men and many more have harnessed their game since then, it is likely those "pre injury concerns" have become nothing more than fanbase schadenfreude.




With all that out the way, time to wrap up this thread once and for all.





At the end of the day, no man knows another dawn. For the Steelers, nothing is guaranteed. Nothing should be taken for granted. Most of all, hope for the best but prepare for the worst. To that end, this seasons main focus was three areas;



1.) Improve coverage against tight ends.


2.) Boost the power of the run defense.


2.) Increase the importance of tackling.



Given the fact that both of these attributes fall in line towards what Terrell is capable of, all that remains is to see him put it into action. Only then can we critquie. For now though, while we cannot agree on the pick itself, we can all agree on one thing;


Pittsburgh's Defense has come a long way since 2015.



For me personally, it was well worth the three year wait no less.




So everyone, that will do it for me. Thank you all for reading and I hoped you enjoyed! Questions or comments? Please leave them down below and as always, if you have something that you would like me to wrtie home about, PM me as I am ready and willing!


Until next time everyone, take care! I will see you all next time!!

 

I get the sense that ones been brewing a while, AQL...

But great post.

 

When Edmonds is making those Holy $hit type plays then the naysayers will be all in that he was a great draft pick. Yes he is going to be the closest thing to replacing Ryan Shazier. Nice job Ask, also nice gif with the sweet Zooey

 

Very good points but you are missing something. The dime defense Butler puts on the field requires safeties who can also cover, even when Shazier was heathy they were giving up massive passing yards to back up QBs. The Broncos game which was the first game you used to highlight your points is one that you need to remember who was shredding that defense, it was the mighty Brock Osweiler.

It was also Osweiler's wild inconsistency and nothing the Steelers D did to rectify that, he missed a couple wide open guys. The other issue is that dime defense was put in place because the teams lack of a consistent pass rush and it doesn't work if the safety covering the TE or RB out of the backfield can't cover, and the guys we picked, Edmunds and Allen, are both typical box safeties that are severely limited in coverage skills.

I will stand by the assessment that the Edmunds pick doesn't help this team out much, if any at all. So you now have Sean Davis, can't cover man to man and diagnose plays, Marcus Allen who will only be a special teams guy, and Edmunds who struggled in coverage in college and will not be able make reads to get in position because he is a rookie, and that leaves a "past his prime" Burnette to be the main safety with the others strictly run stoppers.

It will be ok, the run defense will be better simply because teams will be able to throw without worry, no pass rush and a porous secondary will lead to that. I will say you make a great argument and if they made that pick based on your points then they must believe the front 7 that are in place are just great.

The reason, and I'm probably wrong and way off base, they made that pick, along with the addition of Marcus Allen is because Davis isn't the future at that position. I say that because they went an acquired a former Giants player for special teams who happens to be a safety, they sign FA safety Burnette then draft 2 more safeties and while Marcus Allen is a special teams player as far as I can see, it looks as if the team has lost confidence in Davis.

As I said, I'm most likely wrong but why ignore other positions where you may get some help and if not a special teams player? Instead they are really getting a lot of safety help and I believe that is based on how poorly Sean Davis played last season. You did a great job on the dime defense breakdown but it doesn't matter if teams can run at will and that really hasn't been addressed, as least as far as I can see.

 

You are correct. None of what I stated matters if opposing teams can run at will. However, bear in mind that the "Dime" defense, in itself, is a sub package. It is not meant to be the "ultimate solution". No defense is.


In all likelihood, I would imagine that the likes of the base 3-4 and Nickel packages would be used in conjunction to stop or limit opposing rushing attacks; using Joshua Frazier namely, who himself reallt deserves his own thread.



Now, should the team be in a "Dime" defense against a run heavy offensive formation, I could see that becoming a problem. However, unless it is some form of trap or counter run, I would not be too concerned with it as we have dealt with such offensive threats before.



As I said, whether or not Terrell is well received by the fanbase is entirely up to those people. That is fine. What we cannot deny though, is that both Butler and Tomlin are finally able to run a defense they have longed for since 2015. They have the "missing piece" in addition towards a contingency plan should anything happen to that piece.

 

Cliff notes?




Nice write up.

 

Basically you coulda said... we cut Mitchell..so we're good... kidding..thanks for the post...

 

My pleasure.

 

TLDR

 

Fair enough. Let me break it down for the gist.


In short summary:


- Terrell was not drafted as a mere safety but rather a focal point of the future.


- He will have more usage than just being a "Dime 'Backer" in the future.


- Dispelled some Hasty Generalizations within the fanbase upon his selection.


Most importantly.


- Keith Butler can employ and deploy more defensive options using Terrell alone.

 

In short, they are looked to obtain the personnel in a stretch, pass happy league that allows them to better match the mismatches.

 

I agree with AQL. seems our team is going full hybrid defense. hopefully we can be a high powered offense(lol) that can slow down offenses.

 

I appreciate all your time to make this detailed post, but here is my "cut to the chase" summary. Bottom line, he really has produced like a 3rd-5th round pick. Have some 3rd-5th round picks became really good players? Sure. Wasn't Chris Hope a 3rd-round pick for Pgh? And he turned out to be really good. And he was notably slower than TE.

But here is what makes me scream at this staff: They fall in love with size and speed, ignoring when a player lacks the instincts to cover. you CAN'T teach instincts. You can improve them a tad, but not that much. It has to do with how your brain is wired and you can't teach that. Sure, this guy is big, strong and fast. Kudos. So was Scott Shields. All I see with TE is more of the same: missed tackles, blown coverages and wide open deep targets all the time. I hope I'm wrong but I probably am not.

And it sure doesn't help that we have another safety already who misses tackles and leaves dudes wide open. Oh, and if you think we can stop the rush with a 3-3 line up with a safety playing a tweener LB, good luck with that. KC tried that on us and we ran their @sses over.

I'm not saying TE will be worthless, bu I don't see him fixing our D, not to the degree that a 1st rounder should in my opinion. We are going to see a fast guy running around, but usually not where he should be.


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/terrell-edmunds?id=32462018-0002-5601-25af-a59d7c8988a5

• Will do the work as tackler but can take the worst of the collision
• Missed open field tackles have dogged him
• Takes inconsistent angles to the ball
• Lunges rather than sliding his feet to close distance on cutting runners
• Too aggressive in response to route fakes
• Bites and gets forced into recovery mode
• Lacks desired instincts and feel for deep coverage
• Doesn’t get enough depth to help on deep throws
• Slow to read quarterback and get the jump to range over top
• Fails to find football when his back is to the ball
• Missed the end of the season with a shoulder injury that will have to clear medical

 

Who is thinking this specifically? Terrell Edmunds does not signal the beginning of the end for the base 3-4. Far from it. If anything, I believe you may have misunderstood the overall context of what has been stated here.



Terrell Edmunds is not going to dramatically alter Keith Butler's plans to attack opposing rushing attacks. That in itself would be asinine to think of. The 3-4 base and the Nickel Defense will still see use without Terrell. Those situations in themselves really need their own form of analysis as Joshua Frazier is likely going to be at the forefront of using a throwback nose tackle on those situations. Furthermore, Terrell will still need some time to adjust to the NFL Speed as Morgan Burnett is going to start out at Strong Safety.



Again, what Terrell Edmunds will allocate is a more diverse level of schematics within the playbook overall heading towards the future. As stated in the title, he is not just some "Strong Safety" or a mere "Dime 'Backer". Terrell Edmunds is a multi role chess piece that allows Keith Butler to draw up and create defensive schemes that are versatile. More importantly, those that are unpredictable.




That is how Terrell Edmunds fits into the current plans for 2018 and beyond. That is how Keith Butler will deploy far more defensive formations to stop opposing offense.



Most importantly, that is how this defense will be much better heading into 2018.

 

All that sounds nice but bottom line he is a liability in coverage. A big, fast safety is pretty worthless if they are playing out of position.

 

Based on what specifically?

 

I notice you left off:

• Has size and cover talent to carry pass-catching tight ends around the field
• Reliable hands to take it away when in position
• Desired pursuit speed as chase defender near the line
• Handles contain when called upon and lets teammates flow to the ball

 

In all honesty, scouting reports are dependant on the observers themselves. There can be similarities within each of them but some have contrasting views.


For one, NFL.com does not mention specifically what caliber of player he can be outside the basics of being a Strong Safety given their criteria.


A site like Walter Football details these aspects and much more. If anything, that is one of the few sights I can trust based on scouting reports should I be unable to observe the prospects pros and cons.



In that vein, Terrell Edmunds Scouting Report by Charlie Campbell is far more detailed as shown below:



Strengths:

• Ideal strong safety for current NFL

• Instinctive

• Has man-coverage skills

• Good coverage safety

• Can cover slot receivers

• Can play man coverage on receiving tight ends

• Strong in zone coverage

• Can serve as the eighth man in the box

• Well-rounded defender

• Decisive defender

• Play-maker in the middle of the field

• Ball skills

• Soft hands

• Interception threat

• Covers a lot of ground

• Reacts quickly in coverage

• Tracks the ball well

• Good tackler

• Hard hitter

• Good blitzer

• Plays hard

• Interchangeable safety; can play free or strong

Weaknesses:

• Tight hips

• Struggles in quick redirection

• Can take some missed steps in coverage

• Not a true single-high safety

• Not natural as the deep center fielder

• Shoulder injury in 2017