LATROBE, Pa. -- Even though he didn't sign his contract until the day before the Steelers reported to training camp here at Saint Vincent College Wednesday, Terrell Edmunds was never concerned.
The Steelers' first-round draft pick moved into Rooney Hall here on Wednesday afternoon with the rest of his teammates, just as he knew he would all along.
"It wasn’t an issue," Edmunds said. "I wasn’t concerned about it too much. I knew my agents and the organization would have everything down. Now I’m here and it’s time to get everything rolling."
It's a lot easier to say that the day after signing a four-year, $10.8 million contract that included a $6 million signing bonus. Now the 21-year-old safety can focus on the next part of his journey to the NFL.
And his goal is clear.
"I want to start, but whatever position they put me in, I’ve got to go out and make plays," he said. "If that’s special teams or rolling the dice and coming in on certain packages, I want to go out and compete and do whatever I can to help the team win."
A three-year starter at Virginia Tech, Edmunds finished his college career with 182 tackles, 20 passes defensed, six interceptions and 1.5 sacks, making plays at all levels of the field.
But with Sean Davis, a 2016 second-round pick, and Morgan Burnett, the team's big free agent signing this offseason, ahead of him on the depth chart, starting right away might not be in the cards.
Edmunds, however, has already impressed teammates with his approach to the game.
"He looked very athletic. The first thing I got out of him is that he’s a very mature guy," Burnett said of his impressions of Edmunds during offseason workouts. "He’s mature beyond his age. He’s eager to learn and you can tell the passion he has for the game. It’s going to be a lot of fun seeing him at practice and playing alongside him."
That maturity level likely comes from being a member of a football family. Edmunds' younger brother, Tremaine, was a first-round pick of the Buffalo Bills this year, making them the first brothers selected in the first round of the same draft. And his father, Ferrell Edmunds, was a Pro Bowl tight end for the Miami Dolphins, while his oldest brother, Trey, is a running back for the New Orleans Saints.
Getting everyone together at his parents' place in Ringgold, Va., the past month was the good part of the offseason for the Edmunds family.
"I went back home and hung out with the family a little bit. I worked out with my brothers," Terrell Edmunds said of the past month. "That’s always nice to compete with my brothers back home. That was nice to have some family time."
But now, it's time to go to work. And he's ready to do that now that he has a contract in hand. Especially once the team can finally have a practice in pads Saturday.
"C’mon now, I’m ready for that," Edmunds said. "I haven’t had the pads on for a while. I’ve been through the whole process of the draft, the running and sprints, having the track meet. We did the two-hand touch in the summertime. Now, we’re about to compete and put on the pads and see who’s really a man out there."