It was not a sure thing on Monday, but Bills quarterback Trent Edwards seemed to believe he would be cleared to play for Sunday's game at Tennessee. The only issue at this point is a decision has not been made as to whether he will be starting against the Titans.
"Yeah I should be cleared and ready to go," said Edwards after Monday's practice. "So I'm excited that I'll be able to help the team out in whatever capacity I can and try to do what I can to get ready to go."
The coaching staff is likely waiting until after Edwards has seen the medical staff for his latest checkup before making a call on the starting quarterback for Sunday.
"That hasn't been decided yet," said Edwards when asked if he'll be the starter. "I haven't met with all the doctors yet or anything. So I'm still kind of feeling good and getting better each day. (Monday) felt great so you'd have to talk to those guys about it. It was the same last week. I was working with all the guys (at practice). It's more like a bye week practice today. We had some Tennessee work today, but it was more like bye week preparation."
Edwards hasn't played since sustaining a concussion in the first half of Buffalo's Week 6 game against the Jets. The Bills have gone 2-1 since he's been out of the lineup counting the team's come from behind win at New York in overtime.
He was also wearing a new helmet presumably to provide greater protection against future head injuries.
"He threw the ball around," said Lee Evans. "He looked alright to me. I don't really know (if he's ready medically). It was good to see him out there. He's got a new helmet and that looked a little weird."
Edwards did spend the bye weekend with his family in his native California and enjoyed his down time, but he also believes he gained something by being forced to sit and watch the past couple of weeks as well.
"It's just a matter of taking everything in that you can," he said. "Seeing what Ryan (Fitzpatrick) is doing well and trying to learn from him and talking to O-linemen on the side and seeing what calls they like to make. You don't normally get to do that when you're the starter. You see a lot more things when you're sitting on the sidelines. So there are some things I picked up that will hopefully allow me to get back to where I was last season."
Edwards recognizes that he along with the offense has struggled. He's currently the 25th rated quarterback in the league and is one of just six starters with more interceptions than touchdown passes. Two other starters in the league have already lost their starting jobs (Collins-Tenn., Johnson-TB).
But Edwards isn't going to let the struggles of the first half of the season wear on him and get caught up in whether or not he's playing for his job provided he returns to the lineup this week.
"I feel like every week is that way," said Edwards. "Even if I was (in the doghouse) you can't think that way. You've got to stay confident and stay positive."
All Edwards is concerned about is doing what he can to make the second half of the season more successful for the offense and the team.
"We're facing some tough opponents, but they're winnable football games," said Edwards. "If we play the football we're capable of playing and we're all on the same page playing mistake-free football there's no reason why we can't win a majority of those games. That's our goal each week. We've got eight games left in the season and we'll see where it goes."
