Faceoff - QB Trent Edwards, Buffalo Bills

Posted 8/3, exclusive to Footballguys.com

Upside - by Cecil Lammey

Many people were surprised when the Bills selected Edwards in the 3rd round of the 2007 draft. While at Stanford Edwards flashed big time potential, but hardly ever stayed healthy. Last season, as most rookie QBs do, Trent struggled early and often. He threw for more picks than touchdowns, and there were games where he quite frankly looked lost. That being said, he was still better than J.P. Losman and the Bills front office agreed.

There is no quarterback controversy for the Bills this season. Edwards was named the starter months ago and has been getting used to the new offense that Turk Schonert is installing. It is a quick strike system with plenty of 3-step drops. This means getting the ball into the hands of the playmakers quicker, and letting them work their magic.

Marshawn Lynch should be the lynchpin for this team, and will play an even bigger role in the passing game. Remember, coming out of Cal Lynch was almost as good of a receiver as he is a running back. Defenses should stack the line early in the season to stop Marshawn and make Trent Edwards beat them. But that doesn't mean that Lynch will fail to put up big numbers. Marshawn also makes things easier for Trent because of the play action pass.

Lee Evans is an elite receiver in this league. He just needs a QB that can be consistent and effective. Evans is a great big play wideout, and can stretch the field with the best of them. However, this new offense will mean more crossing/short routes for Evans where he can use his fabulous run after the catch ability to break long gains. The Bills realized that they needed a big target to go opposite of #83. So in the 2nd round they drafted James Hardy, a HUGE target with great athleticism. Rookie WRs rarely make an impact early, but Hardy is the type of player that will be the main receiving threat in the red zone and he will see single coverage all day as teams are doubling up on Lee Evans when they can.

The Bills are a team on the rise, and leading the way will be Trent Edwards.

Downside - by Chris Smith

There really isn't a low side in regards to Trent Edwards when you look at our staff rankings this season. The highest ranking is 19th and the lowest is 29th. My own personal ranking is 27th. That means no matter where our staff has him ranked his value is marginal to almost non-existent. What I can certainly illustrate in this face-off though is why his upside is limited this year and a risk to pick any higher than the late-mid rounds of a fantasy draft.

Reasons to look elsewhere at quarterback in 2008

• Still a work in progress: The good news for Edwards is he earned plenty of playing time in 2007 as a rookie. He had 61% of the passing attempts for the team and at times looked very good. However at other times he appeared to be a confused rookie and he failed to throw a touchdown pass in 7 of his 10 games. That means in seven of his ten games he was a disaster in fantasy football. He also only finished with 6.1 YPA on the season which is very low. It means he struggled to get the ball down the field with consistency.
• Pressure for playing time: It looks like Edwards has emerged as the starter right now but let's not forget former starting QB J.P. Losman who is just 26 years old and still lying in the weeds waiting for another opportunity. Losman is a better athlete, can run for positive yardage and had a much better YPA last year (6.9 to 6.1).
• Very low production at the end of last season: He completed just 43.8% of his passes over the final four games last year for just 5.2 YPA. That just isn't getting it done.

Final Thoughts

I believe that Trent Edwards has potential to be a very nice professional football player. However I am not as sure that Edwards will ever be a fantasy starter and it is certainly up in the air right now whether he will hold onto the starting job throughout the entire 2008 season. Take away the six touchdown passes he threw in two games and he managed just one additional score in the other eight games. This is very low production. Also, he threw for 200+ yards in just two games. Look elsewhere for a quarterback in 2008.