Robert Edwards (football player)
Encyclopedia
Robert Lee Edwards, III (born October 2, 1974) is a former NFL and CFL
running back
. Originally drafted by the New England Patriots
, he also played for the Miami Dolphins
and Montreal Alouettes
before ending his career with the Toronto Argonauts
.
He is the older brother of current Winnipeg Blue Bombers
receiver Terrence Edwards
.
at the University of Georgia
. He was originally recruited to play cornerback
, where he was a starter
through his sophomore year. After that season, he was converted to running back. As a running back he set a University of Georgia record for scoring five touchdown
s in one game against the University of South Carolina
. Robert eventually went on to become one of the most prized prospects for the NFL despite constant injury problems.
in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft
in which Peyton Manning
was taken first overall. He rushed for 1,115 yards for the Patriots in the 1998
National Football League
season, before blowing out his knee at an NFL rookie
flag football game in Hawaii
. Edwards barely escaped the injury without having his leg amputated below the knee, and he was told he might not walk again.
Edwards would not play football again until 2002
, when he made his return with the Miami Dolphins
. In his first game back, against the Detroit Lions
, Edwards caught a touchdown pass and ran for another score. He spent the rest of the season sharing third-down back duties with fellow running back Travis Minor
. After the season, he lost his spot on the roster to Leonard Henry
. Edwards was awarded the Pro Football Writers Association
Halas Award for his comeback from his serious injury.
in 2005
, and was the team's leading rusher, running for over 1,000 yards each of the first two seasons he played in Montreal. In addition to being the Montreal Alouettes leading rusher, Edwards has twice been named a CFL Eastern Division
All-Star (2005, 2006). On August 18, 2007, Edwards was released by the Alouettes. He was picked up by the Toronto Argonauts
a day later.
On January 31, 2008, Edwards was released by the Argonauts.
at Arlington Christian School in Fairburn, GA.
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
. Originally drafted by the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
, he also played for the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
before ending his career with the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
.
He is the older brother of current Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded...
receiver Terrence Edwards
Terrence Edwards
Terrence Edwards is a Canadian football wide receiver who currently plays for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. He was originally signed by the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent in 2003...
.
College career
Edwards was a featured running back collegiatelyCollege football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
. He was originally recruited to play cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
, where he was a starter
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
through his sophomore year. After that season, he was converted to running back. As a running back he set a University of Georgia record for scoring five touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
s in one game against the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
. Robert eventually went on to become one of the most prized prospects for the NFL despite constant injury problems.
Injury problems
Throughout his college career Edwards was very injury prone. He never finished a full season in college due to knee problems and one year due to a broken hand which allowed him to earn an injury redshirt for that season. Though he was very successful when healthy it is very possible that his draft stock dropped due to his constant injury status. This did not do as much damage to his future in the Draft but it would come back to hurt him once he entered the league.National Football League
Edwards was chosen by the New England PatriotsNew England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft
1998 NFL Draft
The 1998 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18-19, 1998...
in which Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning
Peyton Williams Manning is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League . Manning holds the record for most NFL MVP awards with four. He was drafted by the Colts as the first overall pick in 1998 after a standout college football career with the...
was taken first overall. He rushed for 1,115 yards for the Patriots in the 1998
1998 New England Patriots season
The 1998 New England Patriots season was the 29th season for the team in the National Football League and 39th season overall. They finished with a 9–7 record, good for fourth place in the division but also a playoff berth; they lost in the first round to the Jacksonville Jaguars.In the offseason,...
National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
season, before blowing out his knee at an NFL rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
flag football game in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. Edwards barely escaped the injury without having his leg amputated below the knee, and he was told he might not walk again.
Edwards would not play football again until 2002
2002 NFL season
The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.The league went back to an even number of teams, expanding to 32 teams with the addition of the Houston Texans. The clubs were then realigned into eight divisions, four teams in each...
, when he made his return with the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. In his first game back, against the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, Edwards caught a touchdown pass and ran for another score. He spent the rest of the season sharing third-down back duties with fellow running back Travis Minor
Travis Minor
Travis Minor was an American football running back for the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the third round of the 2001 NFL Draft...
. After the season, he lost his spot on the roster to Leonard Henry
Leonard Henry
Leonard Henry is a former American football running back of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2002 NFL Draft...
. Edwards was awarded the Pro Football Writers Association
Pro Football Writers Association
Technically known as the Pro Football Writers of America, this organization purports to be "The official voice of pro football writers, promoting and fighting for access to NFL personnel to best serve the public." Goals of the organization include improving access to practices and locker rooms,...
Halas Award for his comeback from his serious injury.
Canadian Football League
Edwards joined the CFL's Montreal AlouettesMontreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
in 2005
2005 CFL season
The 2005 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 52nd season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 48th Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 2005:...
, and was the team's leading rusher, running for over 1,000 yards each of the first two seasons he played in Montreal. In addition to being the Montreal Alouettes leading rusher, Edwards has twice been named a CFL Eastern Division
Canadian Football League East Division
The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues.- Pre-1907 :...
All-Star (2005, 2006). On August 18, 2007, Edwards was released by the Alouettes. He was picked up by the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
a day later.
On January 31, 2008, Edwards was released by the Argonauts.
Coaching career
In 2009, Edwards returned to football as the head coachHead coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
at Arlington Christian School in Fairburn, GA.