LA Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz has not fallen asleep at the wheel this season. Hortiz has been extremely active in moving pieces in and out of Los Angeles and the results have spoken for themselves.
Hortiz has been an expert at adding impactful pieces around the roster edges this season. Whether it be claiming Teair Tart before the season to become an impactful player, or bringing in veteran Marcus Maye to come up with a huge interception against the Atlanta Falcons, the Chargers have been successful at adding talent this season.
Los Angeles might be hoping that the latest addition can be another example of this success. With the team battling several injuries to the secondary, Los Angeles signed former first-round pick Terrell Edmunds to the practice squad Thursday.
The Chargers signed S Terrell Edmunds to the practice squad and released S Emany Johnson from the p squad
— Kris Rhim (@krisrhim1) January 2, 2025
Chargers sign Terrell Edmunds to practice squad
Edmunds is the epitome of a late-season addition as the Chargers signed him three days before the team's last game of the regular season. It is unlikely that Edmunds will play in Week 18 on such short notice, but if the Chargers have nothing to play for on Saturday, the team could elevate him from the practice squad to keep the starters fresh.
The Chargers lost impactful safety Elijah Molden to a fibula injury that landed him on IR before the end of the season. Alohi Gilman is set to return in Week 18 to help soften that loss, but the Chargers are still thin at the safety position.
With Derwin James playing in the nickel, the Chargers are turning to veteran Tony Jefferson to get a bulk of the safety snaps alongside Gilman. Jefferson has been serviceable this season but it is not hard to see why the Chargers would want to add more depth.
The odds of Edmunds being majorly impactful is slim. But the Chargers still brought him in for a reason, and at the very least, the team knows it has someone with pedigree to turn to in case someone does get hurt before the NFL Playoffs.
The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Edmunds with the 28th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Edmunds spent five seasons in Pittsburgh as a serviceable starter before signing a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. Philadelphia then traded Edmunds as part of the Kevin Byard trade. From there, Edmunds bounced around between the Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, and back to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The former Virginia Tech safety has played in six games this season with zero starts on defense. He has played 69 total defensive snaps and 82 special teams snaps this season.