Anyone who's followed this blog closely (so I guess I'm just talking to you here Dad) knows that I've always had a soft spot for Mr. Edelman. I was intrigued as soon as we drafted him, hearing we were planning on transforming him from a college qb into a receiver. When he returned a punt for a TD that preseason I was fully aboard the bandwagon.
No secret it's been a roller-coaster of a career so far. He went from "that guy wearing Bledsoe's number" to exciting punt returner then started to look like Wes Welker reincarnated. Seems like forever ago now but in 2009, Edelman eased the absence of Welker in a big way. With #83 out Edelman went for 8 catches, 98 yards against the Jets, 10 catches, 103 yards against the Chiefs, and caught the only two Patriots scores in the playoff loss to the Ravens.
By his sophomore season he was already facing some big expectations from the fan-base, as he was now more of a household name. There was no way anyone could have anticipated that Welker wouldn't miss a 2010 regular season game, so we spent the entire offseason envisioning Edelman becoming a star. In hindsight, this was unfair and a lot to expect for a kid in his second year in the league AND in a new position.
Tom Brady has always been good at spreading the ball around to different receivers but there was no way Edelman could have become a consistent pass catcher in this offense. TB12 just has too much chemistry with Welker and Branch. The team was headed towards an offense built around the tight ends anyways. There's only one football. This excuse also works for one Ochocinco, but no one wants to get into that.
Injuries to our secondary might have forced Belichick to consider Edelman as an emergency defensive option, but with the way he's playing one wonders if that's not the side of the ball where he really belongs. His first play as a nickel back he put Tomlinson out of the game. He's been a special teamer since he came in the league so this isn't his first time tackling, but it's been surprising how spotless his form is. He breaks down, gets low, and leads with his shoulder instead of the crown of his helmet.
He was a split second away from getting a sack on Vince Young, but made sure not to draw a roughing the passer penalty.
"With the new rules I didn't want to get a penalty or anything," he said. "So I just kinda tried to hit him in the right zone."
His swiss army knife ways earned him the nickname "Slash" from safety James Ihedigbo.
As a fan I'm just glad he's getting himself on the field, especially after the trouble he was in earlier this season.
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