Troy Edwards

Last updated

Troy Edwards
No. 81, 88, 18, 16
Position: Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1977-04-07) April 7, 1977 (age 46)
Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.
Height:5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school: Huntington (Shreveport)
College: Louisiana Tech
NFL draft: 1999  / Round: 1 / Pick: 13
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:92
Receptions:203
Receiving yards:2,404
Receiving touchdowns:11
Player stats at NFL.com  ·  PFR  ·  ArenaFan.com

Troy Edwards (born April 7, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, became one of the most prolific receivers in college football history. He earned All-American honors and won the Fred Biletnikoff Award. Edwards was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft, and he played professionally for the Steelers, St. Louis Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Detroit Lions of the NFL. He also played for the Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League (AFL).

Contents

Early years

Edwards was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. He attended Huntington High School in Shreveport, where he played high school football.

College career

Edwards attended Louisiana Tech University, where he played for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team from 1995 to 1998. As a senior in 1998, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American and won the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the season’s outstanding college football receiver at the conclusion of the 1998 season.

In the 1998 season opener versus the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Edwards had 21 catches for 405 yards—the most ever receiving yards in a single game by a college player. [1] His twenty-seven touchdown catches during his 1998 senior year remains the NCAA Division I-A season record. He held the NCAA career record for touchdown receptions with fifty until it was broken by the Rice Owls' Jarett Dillard. His 140 career receptions is the third most in Division I-A history, and his 1,996 receiving yards gained during his senior season remains the second most in Division I-A history.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
5 ft 9+1⁄2 in
(1.77 m)		191 lb
(87 kg)		30+1⁄8 in
(0.77 m)		8+1⁄2 in
(0.22 m)		4.57 s1.60 s2.63 s4.16 s7.37 s36.5 in
(0.93 m)		9 ft 10 in
(3.00 m)
All values from NFL Combine [2]

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Edwards in the first round (13th pick overall) in the 1999 NFL Draft after the team lost out on David Boston to the Arizona Cardinals, making him the team's first draft pick from Louisiana Tech since selecting Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw first overall in the 1970 NFL Draft. [3] Despite high expectations for Edwards, he was quickly passed on the depth chart by other receivers, including Plaxico Burress (the team's first round pick the following year) and most notably Hines Ward, whom the Steelers used a 3rd round pick on the year before Edwards and was initially considered an afterthought when Edwards was drafted. This, combined with head coach Bill Cowher's tendency to run the football, inconsistency at the quarterback position from Kordell Stewart and various backups, and a rare decline in the Steelers on-field success led to Edwards openly admitting to his unhappiness in a 2001 radio interview--a year in which the Steelers returned to Super Bowl contender status. Years later, Edwards admitted that he should have handled his time better in Pittsburgh and blamed his immaturity for failing to live up to expectations. [4]

In 2002, Edwards was traded to the St. Louis Rams, where he played a single season. He also played for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2003 and 2004, and the Detroit Lions in 2005. In seven NFL seasons, he played in ninety-two games, started twenty-two of them, caught 203 passes for 2,404 yards and eleven touchdowns, and also compiled 1,560 punt return yards.

He finished his professional football career with the Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League in 2007.

NFL statistics

YearTeamGPReceivingRushingPunt returnsKickoff returns
RecYdsAvgLngTDFDAttYdsAvgLngTDFDRetYdsLngTDFCRetYdsLngTD
1999 PIT 166171411.741542——————25234480413234440
2000 PIT 141821511.927011341.315010000115298370
2001 PIT 161928314.9570125285.612111083280020462810
2002 STL 14181578.748283217.027010000010211320
2003 JAX 133548713.9843223-9-3.040000000120200
2004 JAX 165053310.736125221.0200326140115335450
2005 DET 32157.5801———————————————
Career [5] 922032,40411.8841112116462.92713383434806741,560810

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Sports Reference, College Football -- NCAA Individual Records for Receiving -- https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/leaders/records-player-receiving.html
  2. ↑ "1999 NFL Draft Scout Troy Edwards College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  3. ↑ "1999 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
  4. ↑ "One-on-One interview with WR Troy Edwards". 29 June 2016.
  5. ↑ "Troy Edwards Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Venutures. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
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