4 moves that would turn Steelers' inside linebacker unit into one of the NFL's best
By Cory Rogers
3) Sign the Edmunds brothers
Tremaine Edmunds is an unrestricted free agent who has started the last five seasons in Buffalo. This huge, 6-5, 250-pound inside linebacker was a first-round draft choice (number 16 overall) by the Bills in 2019 after starring at Virginia Tech.
Tremaine’s been clocked at 4.54 in the 40-yard dash and according to ProFootballFocus (PFF), he’s “made huge strides in coverage in 2022, a major weakness in his game through his first four seasons. He is a truly freakish athlete and will be 25 years old throughout his entire sixth NFL season in 2023.”
Edmunds collected over 100 total tackles in each of his first five seasons as a pro and has 6.5 sacks and two forced fumbles in his NFL career. Along the way, he also has posted 35 career passes defensed and five interceptions.
Fitting the mold of free agents the Steelers like to sign, he’s coming off his first contract and still has plenty of great years ahead of him. The Black & Gold’s linebacker corps could certainly use help in coverage, as we’ve seen that be an Achilles heel for them over the past several seasons.
Now, in order for Tremaine to be in play, the Steelers will likely also need to re-sign his brother, Steelers' starting strong safety Terrell Edmunds (also an unrestricted free agent). This is not something Pittsburgh has to do, rather it’s something the Steelers should want to do after his solid 2022 campaign (70 total tackles, 2.0 sacks, 5 passes defensed) on a one-year deal.
Re-signing Terrell and signing Tremaine would not only give the Steelers yet another set of brothers on the roster (maybe the Steelers should make the old Pirates theme song “We Are Family” their theme song), but it would also strengthen the inside linebacker unit and provide stability on the back end where Terrell works well with All-Pro free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.