Braylon Edwards to 49ers: Why Edwards Makes Sense for San Francisco, Alex Smith

Braylon Edwards met with the San Francisco 49ers tonight according to Twitter magician and free agent aficionado Adam Schefter.

What else is that you say, Mr. Schefter?

It could be a potential landing spot for a one-year deal? Very curious move by the San Francisco 49ers. Also, a potentially ingenious move.

We all know the story with Braylon Edwards. He has a ridiculous amount of potential, is one of the most athletic and physically imposing wide receivers in the NFL, but he has always had off-the-field problems. Recently, Edwards was apparently involved in a bar fight that involved forks and knives. He never ceases to amaze.

The thing about his ability to amaze is that it extends to the football field. Edwards has an innate ability to make spectacular grabs look easy, and make lobs into double-coverage look like good decisions.

The problem arises when the off-the-field Braylon and on-the-field Braylon collide.

He drops passes, gets lazy, and is an all-around bad teammate. This past year for the New York Jets, we saw good Braylon. He finished the year with more than 900 yards receiving and seven touchdown receptions. Impressive turnaround for a guy who had only three touchdown receptions in 2009 and had more than his share of dropped catches.

This is why the one-year-deal makes perfect sense for Braylon and the San Francisco 49ers.

Edwards will be highly motivated for that next contract, and the Niners will get his absolute best for 16 games. In fact, if they get his best for 16 games, they may even be able to sneak into the playoffs in the stunningly-pathetic NFC West. Then, they would get his best for 17 games, coincidentally, Braylon's favorite number.

Now listen, I'm not going to go around saying that Braylon to the Niners is a huge power shift in the NFC, but adding his size and skill to their offense could at least make their passing game mediocre. Especially with the news that they may be without exceptional wide receiver Michael Crabtree for a little while longer.

No one is going to make Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick look like Tom Brady, but Braylon could at least provide San Fran with a deep threat to complement Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, and eventually, Crabtree.

Going to San Francisco might take No. 17 out of the spotlight for a year, but next offseason, with a hopefully clean slate, maybe Braylon can find the long-term contract he was looking for.