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QB Trent Edwards, Buffalo Bills

HT: 6-4, WT: 220, Born: 10-30-1983, College: Stanford, Drafted: Round 3

2008 Projections

Average draft position

Current as of June 28th. [Full ADP list]

Overall: Z Miller (167), T Henry (168), Trent Edwards (169), D Foster (170),
Position: J Garcia (153-QB22), J Russell (154-QB23), Trent Edwards (169 - QB24), A Smith (182-QB25), K Warner (183-QB26)
Click here for a comparison of these players.

 Click here to go to the Trent Edwards spotlight, our staff's most detailed analysis.

Best Case

Trent Edwards took over the starting job from J.P. Losman at two separate times during last season and the Bills saw enough to convince them that he is their QB of the future. Edwards has ideal size for a franchise QB and a very accurate arm. He showed surprising poise as a rookie and generally made good decisions with the football, taking whatever the defense gave him rather than forcing the ball into dangerous situations like most inexperienced QBs. Continued improvement from Edwards in his second season, playing in the same system, should help the Bills passing game improve significantly from their 30th ranking a year ago. Lee Evans remains one of the best young WRs in the league and should rebound from what was a frustrating season. The Bills also gave Edwards a new red zone weapon by drafting 6-foot-6 WR James Hardy in the second round out of Indiana. If Hardy makes a quick adjustment and the Bills offensive line continues to show improvement, Edwards has a reasonable chance to finish among the top-15 fantasy QBs this year and would make a solid QB2 for your fantasy team.

Worst Case

Edwards had a hard time staying healthy in college while playing behind a very porous offensive line. The Bills have made improvements to their line over the past couple years, but it still is probably no better than average, so Edwards' durability is certainly a concern if he can't get adequate protection. If he were to suffer another injury, that could open up the door just enough for Losman to come back in and steal the job again. The Bills have lacked playmakers on offense in recent years, but they've also become far too conservative in their offensive game plans and play calling. Edwards generally did a good job of avoiding mistakes as a rookie, but he didn't make a lot of plays either. He doesn't have a strong arm like Losman so he's not able to take full advantage of Evans' deep speed on the outside. He looks like a system QB who will do enough to win as long as you surround him with a strong defense and running game, but he probably won't ever carry a fantasy team.

Outlook

The Bills struggled on offense last year, but there were a few good reasons for it. First, they faced perhaps the most difficult schedule in the league. Second, they were very young on defense so the coaches wanted to focus heavily on the running game to try and keep games close. Third, J.P. Losman flopped and the team had to turn to a rookie QB, which is rarely a way to improve the offensive production right away. This year, the team has one of the league's easiest schedules, their defense figures to be much better, and Edwards should be much more comfortable now that he's had a full season to learn the offense and adjust to the speed of the NFL. The pieces are all in place for Edwards to be successful, but he's probably still a year away from becoming a reliable fantasy option.

Relevant Articles

2008 Schedule

2007 Game Summaries

Week 3 - QB Trent Edwards had no NFL experience heading into today's game but that did not stop him from leading the Bills on a 12 play 80 yard touchdown drive on his first possession of the game. He made a nice 21 yard pass to WR Josh Reed on the sideline and converted three third downs on the drive including a 13 yard pass to WR Roscoe Parrish over the middle on third and eight.

The next five drives failed to result in a single first down and the Bills did not put up another point the rest of the way. The Patriots' defense adjusted well to the new looks the Bills were giving them on offense and the game was pretty much over in the second quarter.

His lone interception occurred after he threw the ball too high and behind the receiver in the 4th quarter. Overall, he did not look good outside of his first drive of the game where he was four for five on attempts for 55 yards. Over the rest of the game he only completed six of 15 for 42 yards. In general, the wide receivers on the Bills looked capable and willing to make the extra effort to bring in balls but Edwards' inexperience and the Patriots' mid-game defensive adjustments proved too much.

Following the QB Tom Brady goal line fumble, the Bills were pushed back deep in their zone. On the first play, Edwards nearly ran out of the back of the end zone for a safety. Lacking confidence in their quarterback, the Bills ran the ball on second and third downs down in an effort to give P Brian Moorman some room to punt, effectively giving up on the drive.

Week 4 - The sixth quarterback taken in the 2007 draft made his first career start due to J.P. Losman's knee injury. It was fitting that Buffalo was playing the Jets, because Edwards had a Chad Pennington-like performance. In fact, he outplayed his opponent. Edwards completed ten of his first eleven throws for 116 yards. He would have been a perfect eleven for eleven, but was victimized by Lee Evans' drop of his third pass. Edwards looked as composed as a wily veteran and had little difficulty going through his progressions. He was also amazingly accurate. Nearly all of his passes were crisp and right on the money. Edward threw one interception. He tried to hit Lee Evans on a bomb from the New York 38 yard line. The pass was well thrown, but Andre Dyson made a great play on the ball for the interception.

Edwards calmly found tight end Michael Gaines for a one yard touchdown on a fourth and goal play in the fourth quarter. It was the first touchdown pass of his career. It was a good indication of how much faith the coaching staff has in Edwards as the team was initially lined up for a field goal but after a timeout, decided to go for the touchdown.

Edwards was credited with one yard loss on a kneel down play to end the game.

Week 5 - Considering he was playing in only his third NFL game against an undefeated team in front of a national audience, Edwards' performance was pretty solid. He hurried his throws at times, especially in the first quarter, but he held up well under pressure and frequently got the ball away just in time to avoid a sack. He was hit hard at least a half dozen times in this game, but it did not seem to rattle him. Edwards spread the ball around and did not favor any particular receiver. He took very few chances throwing the ball, and most of his completions were dump offs to his running backs and tight ends. Edwards had no turnovers until the fourth quarter, when he threw an ill-advised pass to Lee Evans that was picked off and nearly returned for a TD. Edwards also fumbled the ball on a fourth quarter sack, though he recovered it. Despite the numerous opportunities presented by Cowboys turnovers, not to mention the relentless praise being heaped upon him by the game announcers, the bottom line is that Edwards did not get his team in the end zone, and the Buffalo offense accounted for only three points.

Week 7 - Although J.P. Losman is healthy enough to play, Edwards was given his third straight start. He did not have a great outing, but did a mostly good job orchestrating Buffalo's no huddle offense in this game. Edwards displays remarkable composure for a rookie. He rarely tries to force passes into coverage and shows a willingness to throw the ball away if his receivers are not open. Two of Edwards' passes were tipped at the line of scrimmage. Edwards threw one interception, when he uncharacteristically tried to force a pass to Lee Evans on a slant route. Samari Rolle read the play and beat Evans to the spot.

Edwards tried to use a hard count to draw the Ravens offside and was successful on five occasions. Edwards is now 2-1 as a starter and has played well enough to have the opportunity to continue in that roll.

Week 8 - Edwards started the game of strong completing his first seven passes of the day and orchestrating an opening drive which took up over ten minutes and resulted in a field goal. His eighth pass however, resulted in the only turnover of the day for the Bills as rookie corner Darelle Revis came up with his first career interception. Edwards ended his day completing 14 of 21 passes for 130 yards and no touchdowns, however had to give way to J.P. Losman after he suffered an injury to his wrist.

Week 13 - Edwards showed good accuracy, but had a hard time getting the ball down the field. His favorite targets were his wide receivers, Lee Evans, Josh Reed, and Roscoe Parrish. Edwards did a good job protecting the ball, as he wasn't sacked once, didn't lose a fumble, and failed to throw an interception. He started the game slowly, but rallied to lead the team to 15 second half points (all on field goals) that earned his team the victory. Edwards had a great game winning drive, where he found Josh Reed for a big 31 yard gain that set the stage for Lindell's victorious field goal. He averaged 7.13 yards per attempt and had no touchdowns.

Week 14 - Edwards threw only one touchdown pass in his first six games. Against Miami, however, Edwards tossed four touchdown passes to even his season total at five touchdowns and five interceptions. Edwards has a strong arm and is capable of making any throw on the field. He is also usually very accurate; Edwards entered the game with a 65 percent completion percentage. That rate dropped as Edwards missed on some passes he would normally complete. Nevertheless, Edwards took care of the ball and led Buffalo to a season high 38 points. Edwards is now 4-1 as a starting quarterback.

Week 15 - Edwards really struggled in the blizzard, completing only 13 of 33 passes. His offensive line failed to give him enough time to really get set up in the pocket and as a result a number of his passes sailed over his receiver's heads. On more than a few routes it was clear that the communication between Edwards and his receivers was off as passes hit off the back of the receiver or were thrown to an empty field. He did show some mobility on a 12 yard scramble in the first half and had the presence of mind to get out of bounds at the end of the play.

Week 16 - For the second week in a row Californian Edwards faced some horrendous weather conditions. He played well early on but the Giants kept pressuring him throughout the game. Losing all Pro LT Jason Peters to a leg injury exacerbated the situation. Edwards' receivers were guilty of not hanging onto the ball but the gusty winds were a factor. The third round draft pick from Stanford now has a 5 and 3 record and should be on your dynasty radar.

Week 17 - The Stanford rookie had a mediocre game, completing 16 of 30 for 133 yards and zero touchdowns, and managed to scramble three times for 17 yards in the face of a strong pass rush. His quickness may have prevented the Eagles from sacking him, but he was unable to get the ball into the end zone on three trips inside the red zone. The Buffalo passing attack was ineffective to begin with but it disappeared after Lee Evans was injured in the second quarter and had to leave the game.