76.9, 72.8, 72.0, 63.1, 82.5, 66.5, 66.6, 63.0
What do those numbers have in common? They are the quarterback ratings for that season of the guys who have lined up under center for a significant chunk of a year with Braylon Edwards. Quarterback rating is not the end all for judging effectiveness, but these numbers are pretty stark. Edwards has rarely had a quality guy looking for him.
The outlier of the group is the 82.5 number. That belonged to Derek Anderson in 2007. How was Edwards that season? He had 80 catches for 1,289 yards, and 16 touchdowns.
I always hear people chide Edwards because he only had one good year. That happened to be the only year of his career he had a productive quarterback. Quarterback play matters a ton when we are talking about receiver productivity.
Braylon has done a lot to fuel the perception he is an underachiver. There are the drops, off field incidents, and an ugly contract dispute in Cleveland. I look at those numbers, though, and feel those writing him off are premature. There aren't many receivers with the ridiculous combination of speed and athleticism to run a route and explode like this.
How much will Mark Sanchez improve in year two? We cannot say at this point. If he matures, though, don't be surprised to see Edwards have a huge year.