4 reasons Steelers picking up Terrell Edmunds’ option is a no-brainer

There isn’t much to debate here, as it is a no-brainer for the Steelers to pick up the fifth-year option of Edmunds.

The Steelers shocked the NFL when they selected Terrell Edmunds in the first round of the draft in 2018. Edmunds was seen as an uber athlete but extremely raw safety in terms of ability. For his first two seasons, this seemed accurate, as Edmunds struggled to make much of an impact on the field.

This changed last season though, and now the question has become should the team pick up his fifth-year option. This shouldn’t be a debate though, as these are the reasons picking up Edmunds’s option is a no-brainer.

Cost

According to Over the Cap, the cost to pick up Edmunds’s fifth-year option is 6.753 million dollars in 2022. While that is a significant pay increase from previous years, it isn’t a number that is outrageous. Making this even more palatable is that, according to Over the Cap, the Steelers are projected to have just over 87 million in cap space next year. Edmunds option contract would be just a fraction of that.

Now, to be fair, that projected cap space will decrease with a T.J. Watt deal likely coming, but even then, it is likely the Steelers still have a plethora of space. They won’t have a franchise quarterback under contract which greatly increases the total cap space the team will have. Even if the team doesn’t have the most cap space, giving Edmunds his option won’t break the bank.