No other position in the NFL Draft carries more prestige than quarterback. Looking ahead to the 2010 draft, several teams could be looking at for a new signal caller. During the offseason, we're going to breakdown what teams could be going after a new quarterback following this season.
Who: Buffalo Bills
Currently have: Trent Edwards, Ryan FItzpatrick, Gibran Hamdan, Matt Baker
The cure at quarterback: Buffalo Bills
Breakdown: Now that J.P. Losman is finally out of the picture in Buffalo, Edwards is the unquestioned starter. The problem is that Edwards often looks like the definition of a "game managing" quarterback. In 14 games last season, Edwards finished with 2,699 yards passing while completing 65.5 percent of his passes. That's well enough, but he had almost as many interceptions (10) as touchdowns (11).
Some his poor touchdown-to-interception ratio can certainly be blamed on Buffalo having poor receivers last season, other than Lee Evans. Still, in especially poor performances against Cleveland and San Francisco, Edwards didn't top 150 yards passing. In those games, both losses, Edwards combined for 260 yards passing while completing only 55 percent of his passes. Those losses not only defined Buffalos' free-fall in 2008, but why the team could be looking for a quarterback in the 2010 NFL Draft.
Edwards has also battled injury problems. He has missed time due to issues with his wrist, groin and a concussion.
Fitzpatrick is a career backup who saw a lot of playing time with Cincinnati last season while Carson Palmer was injured. He has good athleticism but is too reliant on his feet. At best he's a solid backup, but in an ideal situation he's a third quarterback.
Hamdan and Baker are journeymen. They bounce around from teams to practice squads on a yearly basis. One will make the team’s roster. Neither should.
Why they won't draft a quarterback: Now in his third season, this will be the first year Edwards goes through training camp exclusively with the No. 1 starters. He also has a good receiving corps with the addition of Terrell Owens and the drafting of Shawn Nelson. (By the way, make sure to follow training camp reports from the guys over at Buffalo Rumblings. They always produce quality content)
Why that’s not good enough: Because no matter what, Buffalo could need a quarterback in next season’s draft. The backups are average at best. How would it affect Edwards’ psyche by taking a quarterback to challenge him for the starting position? Regardless, for now, his future is detriment on how he performs in 2009.
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