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(OMG If I never hear his voice again it will be too soon!)
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Though the 2010 NFL season is still miles away from commencing, the Buffalo Bills players are (mostly) in town this week for voluntary workouts. For a lot of the players it’s their first opportunity to meet with new head coach Chan Gailey.
That includes Trent Edwards, who started last year at quarterback but ended in a state of flux. Edwards began the season decently but started unraveling by the third week. He would miss two games with injury only to come back against Tennessee and play so poorly it would lead to his benching. He made a cameo appearance against New England in week 15 and reinjured exactly two plays later. It finished off his dismal campaign.
His future with the organization has never been less clear. Gailey has said he plans on having an open competition that will feature Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brian Brohm.
The Bills also plan on bringing in a fourth quarterback, most likely through the draft.
Edwards could be the starter next year but could just as easily be a clipboard holder or gone all together.
During his press conference with the media on Tuesday, Edwards said he’s looking forward to playing for Gailey.
“I’m obviously excited,” Edwards said. “We needed to make some changes after last season. That’s the decision that they made. I’m excited for the opportunity to work with him. He’s got a long list of quarterbacks he’s worked with that have succeeded in this league and I’m anxious for the opportunity with that.”
He knows nothing will be handed to him, especially after last year’s catastrophic offensive showing.
“It’s part of the territory,” he said. “I wouldn’t expect them to name anyone right now. There’s no reason, they have no allegiance to anyone right here. I wasn’t drafted by this staff so I have a clean slate just like anyone they bring in here.”
While he’s looking forward to a clean slate with the new staff, he hardly still feels like a rookie.
“Everywhere you kind of want to prove something,” he said. “I don’t feel like a rookie in terms of my experience. I have to look back at these last three years and take what I need to out of the last three years and use to my advantage.”
Edwards came into 2009 expected to lift the Bills out of a nine-year playoff drought. With the team acquiring Terrell Owens and implementing a no huddle attack, big things were expected from the offense.
Neither facet really worked out.
Edwards regressed in his third year. He had more interceptions (seven) that touchdowns (six) and looked confused and timid most of the time.
He admits for him it wasn’t the greatest of years.
“It was a roller coaster ride for me. I had to take the last few months to process what I went through and kind of the highs and the lows. Obviously there were more lows than I wanted to. It was very frustrating for me. Last year at this time you’re the starter, you put in a lot of work; you put in everything you feel like you need to. Guys get dinged up, coaches get fired, you don’t play the way you want to and you don’t win games so it’s tough when you put in all that work and you don’t have anything to show for it.”
While he made it a point to not single out the coaching staff for last year’s woes, Edwards strongly felt the lack of leadership with game planning and play calling had an adverse effect on the offense.
“I don’t want to talk negatively about last year’s staff but the hard part for me as a quarterback was you want to have one person to listen to and one voice,” he said. “I feel like the last couple of years there were kind of.. You say one thing to one guy and then he would say to another guy and what you’re looking for would get lost in the process.”
Last year’s no huddle concept was a calamity. After looking anemic running it throughout training camp and most of the preseason, Dick Jauron canned Turk Schonert less than two weeks before the season, promoted Alex Van Pelt and scrapped the offense they spent several months trying to implement.
A lot of writers and fans thought Edwards wasn’t ready to handle an offense so complicated. He disagrees.
“I like to think that I was and obviously you guys (media) can say that I wasn’t, but I felt like I did everything I could to be ready for it and take on that load,” he said. “ That obviously didn’t work and that’s why we have a new coaching staff in here but there was a lot on my plate, but did I think for a second I couldn’t do it? No, as a player you have to believe in yourself and what you can do as a player.”
His inability to stay healthy and the time-honored tradition of fans and media blaming the quarterback for losses are primary reasons he’s been forced to shoulder so much of the blame.
At least that’s how he feels.
“I think first and foremost I needed to stay healthy. I took some hits I probably should’ve tried to avoid. With some games they didn’t go the way they needed to. The ball didn’t bounce our way. There were plays that were left on the field and its tough when football is a team sport and obviously the quarterback is the one they’re going to look at… put the blame on. I was kind of the person who took a lot of the blame last year and rightfully so. I can definitely take that. Hopefully I can physically maintain myself next year.”
Despite getting benched and being written off from the present and future of the Bills by countless critics, Edwards insists if there’s one thing he hasn’t lost during the entire process is confidence —even if few others share the sentiment.
“I’ve always been a confident player regardless if someone doesn’t want to me to play or not,” he said. “If the media doesn’t like me, if the coach doesn’t like me, I’m still a confident player. That’s not going to change anything about me. People can criticize me, there’s obviously doubters out there. It’s my opportunity, my chance right now to change those into believers. That’s my attitude and that’s not going to waiver regardless if I’m sitting on the sideline or whether I’m playing.”
“It doesn’t matter if someone doesn’t like me. If someone writes something negatively about me, that’s not going to affect me. If a coach doesn’t like the way I’m playing that’s not going to affect me either. I’m going to be confident regardless and that’s not going to change.”
His weaponry right now has the cupboard looking a bit bare. Owens and Josh Reed are both gone and the team hasn’t signed any replacements. For now it looks like James Hardy and Steve Johnson will get first cracks at becoming a starter.
Ever keen on sticking to the script, Edwards wouldn’t offer an opinion on losing either receiver.
“It’s not my territory to comment on that,” he said. “I feel like we have some guys that have a lot of potential. Some guys need to step up in some positions. We’re obviously going to bring guys through the draft, through free agency or through trades and that’s what the guys are supposed to do upstairs here.”
Whether he admits it or not, even the subject of wide receivers has him in defense mode. Edwards had to literally state the departed free agent wide receivers wasn’t his doing.
“That’s not on me but I’m anxious to get back out here and work with these guys and see what they’ve done the last couple of months. Obviously the offense is going to change too so we’ll have to see how well we can pick up that new offensive playbook.”
His future with the club is uncertain but for now, he’s ready to move on from last year and focus on proving himself again.
“I think anytime you play in the NFL and you’re coming off a negative season like we’ve had the last couple of years here and a team still has you under contract and wants you to play for them and you get a chance to line up against the best of the best in this league, that’s an opportunity and a chance for a player to prove themselves and for a team together like I think we need to.”
----
Though the 2010 NFL season is still miles away from commencing, the Buffalo Bills players are (mostly) in town this week for voluntary workouts. For a lot of the players it’s their first opportunity to meet with new head coach Chan Gailey.
That includes Trent Edwards, who started last year at quarterback but ended in a state of flux. Edwards began the season decently but started unraveling by the third week. He would miss two games with injury only to come back against Tennessee and play so poorly it would lead to his benching. He made a cameo appearance against New England in week 15 and reinjured exactly two plays later. It finished off his dismal campaign.
His future with the organization has never been less clear. Gailey has said he plans on having an open competition that will feature Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brian Brohm.
The Bills also plan on bringing in a fourth quarterback, most likely through the draft.
Edwards could be the starter next year but could just as easily be a clipboard holder or gone all together.
During his press conference with the media on Tuesday, Edwards said he’s looking forward to playing for Gailey.
“I’m obviously excited,” Edwards said. “We needed to make some changes after last season. That’s the decision that they made. I’m excited for the opportunity to work with him. He’s got a long list of quarterbacks he’s worked with that have succeeded in this league and I’m anxious for the opportunity with that.”
He knows nothing will be handed to him, especially after last year’s catastrophic offensive showing.
“It’s part of the territory,” he said. “I wouldn’t expect them to name anyone right now. There’s no reason, they have no allegiance to anyone right here. I wasn’t drafted by this staff so I have a clean slate just like anyone they bring in here.”
While he’s looking forward to a clean slate with the new staff, he hardly still feels like a rookie.
“Everywhere you kind of want to prove something,” he said. “I don’t feel like a rookie in terms of my experience. I have to look back at these last three years and take what I need to out of the last three years and use to my advantage.”
Edwards came into 2009 expected to lift the Bills out of a nine-year playoff drought. With the team acquiring Terrell Owens and implementing a no huddle attack, big things were expected from the offense.
Neither facet really worked out.
Edwards regressed in his third year. He had more interceptions (seven) that touchdowns (six) and looked confused and timid most of the time.
He admits for him it wasn’t the greatest of years.
“It was a roller coaster ride for me. I had to take the last few months to process what I went through and kind of the highs and the lows. Obviously there were more lows than I wanted to. It was very frustrating for me. Last year at this time you’re the starter, you put in a lot of work; you put in everything you feel like you need to. Guys get dinged up, coaches get fired, you don’t play the way you want to and you don’t win games so it’s tough when you put in all that work and you don’t have anything to show for it.”
While he made it a point to not single out the coaching staff for last year’s woes, Edwards strongly felt the lack of leadership with game planning and play calling had an adverse effect on the offense.
“I don’t want to talk negatively about last year’s staff but the hard part for me as a quarterback was you want to have one person to listen to and one voice,” he said. “I feel like the last couple of years there were kind of.. You say one thing to one guy and then he would say to another guy and what you’re looking for would get lost in the process.”
Last year’s no huddle concept was a calamity. After looking anemic running it throughout training camp and most of the preseason, Dick Jauron canned Turk Schonert less than two weeks before the season, promoted Alex Van Pelt and scrapped the offense they spent several months trying to implement.
A lot of writers and fans thought Edwards wasn’t ready to handle an offense so complicated. He disagrees.
“I like to think that I was and obviously you guys (media) can say that I wasn’t, but I felt like I did everything I could to be ready for it and take on that load,” he said. “ That obviously didn’t work and that’s why we have a new coaching staff in here but there was a lot on my plate, but did I think for a second I couldn’t do it? No, as a player you have to believe in yourself and what you can do as a player.”
His inability to stay healthy and the time-honored tradition of fans and media blaming the quarterback for losses are primary reasons he’s been forced to shoulder so much of the blame.
At least that’s how he feels.
“I think first and foremost I needed to stay healthy. I took some hits I probably should’ve tried to avoid. With some games they didn’t go the way they needed to. The ball didn’t bounce our way. There were plays that were left on the field and its tough when football is a team sport and obviously the quarterback is the one they’re going to look at… put the blame on. I was kind of the person who took a lot of the blame last year and rightfully so. I can definitely take that. Hopefully I can physically maintain myself next year.”
Despite getting benched and being written off from the present and future of the Bills by countless critics, Edwards insists if there’s one thing he hasn’t lost during the entire process is confidence —even if few others share the sentiment.
“I’ve always been a confident player regardless if someone doesn’t want to me to play or not,” he said. “If the media doesn’t like me, if the coach doesn’t like me, I’m still a confident player. That’s not going to change anything about me. People can criticize me, there’s obviously doubters out there. It’s my opportunity, my chance right now to change those into believers. That’s my attitude and that’s not going to waiver regardless if I’m sitting on the sideline or whether I’m playing.”
“It doesn’t matter if someone doesn’t like me. If someone writes something negatively about me, that’s not going to affect me. If a coach doesn’t like the way I’m playing that’s not going to affect me either. I’m going to be confident regardless and that’s not going to change.”
His weaponry right now has the cupboard looking a bit bare. Owens and Josh Reed are both gone and the team hasn’t signed any replacements. For now it looks like James Hardy and Steve Johnson will get first cracks at becoming a starter.
Ever keen on sticking to the script, Edwards wouldn’t offer an opinion on losing either receiver.
“It’s not my territory to comment on that,” he said. “I feel like we have some guys that have a lot of potential. Some guys need to step up in some positions. We’re obviously going to bring guys through the draft, through free agency or through trades and that’s what the guys are supposed to do upstairs here.”
Whether he admits it or not, even the subject of wide receivers has him in defense mode. Edwards had to literally state the departed free agent wide receivers wasn’t his doing.
“That’s not on me but I’m anxious to get back out here and work with these guys and see what they’ve done the last couple of months. Obviously the offense is going to change too so we’ll have to see how well we can pick up that new offensive playbook.”
His future with the club is uncertain but for now, he’s ready to move on from last year and focus on proving himself again.
“I think anytime you play in the NFL and you’re coming off a negative season like we’ve had the last couple of years here and a team still has you under contract and wants you to play for them and you get a chance to line up against the best of the best in this league, that’s an opportunity and a chance for a player to prove themselves and for a team together like I think we need to.”
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