Silver And Black Pride
Down went Lonnie Johnson Jr. And in comes Terrell Edmunds.
After losing one veteran safety to a broken fibula, the Las Vegas Raiders added another in free agency bolstering depth and adding yet another competitor to the defensive backfield.
Johnson, 29 years old, was injured during the Silver & Black’s open scrimmage back on Aug. 2. The Kentucky product was part of a rotation at safety and is expected to return at some point in 2025. And his absence left a void.
Las Vegas filled it with Edmunds, a 28-year-old veteran. A first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Virginia Tech product fits size, physicality profile the Raiders seek from defenders under general manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll.
“He just said he wanted to see high energy right now. High energy, see how well I can pick up the playbook,” Edmunds said when asked what Carroll wants to see from the veteran safety. “Just play fast, just go out there and play free and just go out there and help out the team.”
Edmunds’ arrival shows the Silver & Black definitely have a type.
Las Vegas is going throwback when it comes to the safety position as in comes the 6-foot-1 and 217-pound Edmunds to fill the gap left by the 6-foot-2 and 221-pound Johnson. The size/speed element that was ever present in the Silver & Black glory days are returning it seems.
Looking at the safety group overall, of the nine players at the position, only two are under the 6-feet threshold in terms of height. The Raiders added Jeremy Chinn (6-foot-3 and 220 pounds) via free agency and re-signed Isaiah Pola-Mao (6-foot-3 and 204 pounds) this offseason. And it’s that duo that’s slated to be the starting safeties for defensive coordinator Patrick Graham’s unit.
The shortest in the room are: Chris Smith II (5-foot-10, 197 pounds) and Thomas Harper (5-foot-10, 189 pounds). Trey Taylor stands 6-feet, 205 pounds while JT Woods is 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds and Hudson Clark measures in at 6-feet, 189 pounds.
Edmunds is in the mold of a downhill safety who makes his presence known with physicality, showcasing that skillset during his first five seasons in the league in Pittsburgh out of Virginia Tech.
During that span, he racked up 410 total tackles (276 solo), 15 tackles for loss, five sacks, nine quarterback hits, five interceptions, and 26 pass deflections. Edmunds was a regular for the Steelers playing in 84 games with 79 starts.
Since then, however, Edmunds career hit a plateau and then dropped off.
He spent 2023 with two teams — the Philadelphia Eagles and Tennessee Titans — and the 2024 campaign with two more squads — the Jacksonville Jaguars and Steelers. He notched just four starts during that timespan and 55 total tackles (39 solo), two tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two quarterback hits, one interception and two pass deflections in those seasons.
Entering his eighth season in the...
