Trent Edwards: Latest Casualty of the Pitiful 2007 NFL Quarterback Draft Class
Quarterback Trent Edwards was waived yesterday by the Buffalo Bills, making him just the latest bust of the 2007 quarterback class that could go down as one of the worst in NFL history.
The 2007 NFL Draft produced some of the best players we have in the game today. Adrian Peterson, Darrelle Revis, Patrick Willis, Joe Thomas, LaMarr Woodley—the list runs pretty deep.
But one thing you won’t find on that list is a quarterback currently starting in the NFL.
In fact the consensus top quarterback and No. 1 pick from the draft, JaMarcus Russell, currently sits on the outside of the league looking at a legacy as the biggest bust in NFL history.
Russell highlights (or lowlights) a 2007 quarterback group that has been a massive failure.
Eleven quarterbacks in total were selected on that fateful weekend and none have materialized into anything more than a serviceable backup.
Let’s take a look at the mess that is the 2007 NFL quarterback class.
It’s safe to say that they won’t be challenging the 1983 group for top honors of all time.
Oakland Raiders Select JaMarcus Russell
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Sadly for the Raiders, JaMarcus Russell turned out to be a player who enjoyed sipping codeine syrup, wearing eye damaging sweaters, and snacking on twinkies more than he enjoyed film study and training.
Many of the draft “experts” dubbed Russell the greatest quarterback talent they had ever laid eyes on. But one thing they overlooked was that sometimes it’s more important to have a good head on your shoulders than to possess the arm to throw a ball 70 yards from your knees.
Russell held out for as much money as he could to begin his rookie season, seemingly knowing that he probably didn’t have the desire it takes to last very long in the league.
The Raiders didn’t quite get the return on their investment they were hoping for. After signing a contract that guaranteed him a whopping $32 million, Russell would go on to finish with a 7-18 record as a starter.
Raise your Styrofoam codeine cups and pour one on the curb for the biggest bust in NFL history—JaMarcus Russell.
Cleveland Browns Select Brady Quinn
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April 28th, 2007 was a day that gave the millions of Notre Dame haters around the country reason to celebrate.
As they watched the Irish golden boy Brady Quinn sit alone in the Radio City green room, their smile must’ve grown a little more sly with each passing pick.
Quinn, once projected to be the top pick in the draft by many so-called experts, took a historic tumble down the board and the audience got to watch each squeamish and awkward moment unfold through the eyes of ESPN's cameras.
Finally, the Cleveland Browns made the unwise decision to show Quinn some mercy hoping that the hometown boy angle would play nice with their fans. The Browns traded back into the first round to select Brady with the 22nd pick.
That moment proved to be the peak of his career as Quinn failed miserably in Cleveland and now sits on the bench in Denver as a backup to Kyle Orton and a future casualty of Tim Tebow.
Well, at least Brady has all those great bowl wins at Notre Dame to look back on...oh wait.
Philadelphia Eagles Select Kevin Kolb
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Kevin Kolb looked like he could be the one true success story of this class, but alas, that pesky Mike Vick had to came along and screw things up.
After backing up Donovan McNabb during his first three years, Kolb finally entered the 2010 season as the starting quarterback and leader of the Philadelphia Eagles offense.
His time on top didn’t last very long though—one half to be precise.
After a concussion sidelined Kolb in the opener against Green Bay, Vick came in to take away his spot and it doesn’t look he’s about to give it back anytime soon.
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Miami Dolphins Select John Beck
4 of 11Every year it seems there’s that one “bandwagon” quarterback that people like Ron Jaworski and other analysts love to project as the surprise pick of the draft.
He’s usually a guy that’s rated a step below the top tier quarterbacks as a second or third round prospect. Oregon’s Kellen Clemens is the one who sticks out the most that everyone really got duped into believing in.
The 2007 bandwagon quarterback was BYU's John Beck.
I remember Jaworski gushing about Beck when the Dolphins selected him midway through the second round but the high praise certainly proved to be unwarranted.
After two disappointing seasons, Miami cut ties with Beck and he’s bounced around the league since then, playing for the Ravens and now currently for the Redskins.
Anticipation, it's making me wait.
Detroit Lions Select Drew Stanton
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The Lions haven’t had the greatest luck drafting quarterbacks—or drafting at all for that matter—but to be honest, they didn’t do all that bad with the Drew Stanton pick.
Sure, Stanton will never be a starter in the NFL, but he can be a quality backup for Matt Stafford for the next couple of seasons.
Right now Stanton is the backup to Shaun Hill while Stafford is out with an injury.
Although it does have to hurt a little that Minnesota's Sidney Rice and Pittsburgh's LaMarr Woodley, two Pro Bowl players, were selected right after the Stanton selection.
Buffalo Bills Select Trent Edwards
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For a second there, it looked like Trent Edwards could actually be a decent starting NFL quarterback, but that notion quickly faded along with the entire Buffalo Bills organization.
Edwards, once a coveted All-American recruit coming out of high school, showed that he had some skills but they just weren’t good enough to get it done in the NFL—especially behind an offensive line that has looked like a sieve for the last few years.
Good new for the Bills: They’ll most likely have the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft and there should be a few good franchise quarterback prospects waiting for them.
Dallas Cowboys Select Isaiah Stanback
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Isaiah Stanback, a terrific athlete who played quarterback at Washington, made the transition to wide receiver in the NFL but the move wasn’t one that exactly set his professional career on fire.
Stanback ended his two-year stint with the Cowboys with just two total catches before being cut.
He got a shot with New England and Seattle, but injuries have derailed his career and his future in the NFL is currently up in the air.
Cincinnati Bengals Select Jeff Rowe
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Coming out of Nevada, the 6‘5" 220 lb. Jeff Rowe had the size you want in a prototypical NFL quarterback, but he didn’t really have much else.
Rowe has never taken a snap in an NFL regular season game and he is currently not on any active roster.
Baltimore Ravens Select Troy Smith
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Troy Smith was described by Sports Illustrated’s Peter King as a candidate to go No. 1 overall in the 2007 draft, which alleviates the need to ever listen to Peter King on anything related to the NFL Draft again.
Smith, the 2006 Heisman Trophy winner who led the Ohio State Buckeyes to a National Championship game appearance in his senior season, ended up being taken by the Ravens in the fifth round with the 174th overall pick.
At only six feet tall with just average tools, it was ludicrous of King to project Smith as a first rounder even with his great final season.
The Ravens showed how much faith they had in Smith by drafting Joe Flacco in 2008.
Smith is now a fourth stringer behind Alex Smith, David Carr, and Nate Davis out in San Francisco.
Washington Redskins Select Jordan Palmer
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Jordan Palmer wasn’t born with the same great gifts as his brother Carson, but he did happen to benefit from sharing the same last name.
Because of his brother’s early success in the NFL, the Washington Redskins decided to give the younger Palmer, who was an absolute interception machine in his four-year career at UTEP, a shot in the big leagues.
He didn’t even to make it to the regular season.
After a stint in the Arena League, the Cincinnati Bengals decided to make a Bengals-like personnel decision by bringing in Jordan to backup his brother.
Kansas City Chiefs Select Tyler Thigpen
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Coastal Carolina isn’t exactly a hotbed of NFL talent, but that didn’t stop quarterback Tyler Thigpen from being drafted by the Vikings in the seventh round.
Thigpen may have been the last quarterback selected in the draft, but he was far from the worst.
After being put on waivers before the start of his rookie season, Thigpen was claimed by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Thigpen has the 2008 season to point to as his moment of glory. The second-year quarterback was the starter for the majority of a 2-14 campaign, throwing for 21 TDs on the year.
After Matt Cassel was acquired from the Patriots the following year, Thigpen was shipped off to Miami where he currently backs up Chad Henne.
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