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At the end of the 2010 season, the New York Jets were faced with a dilemma. Their two top receivers, Santonio Holmes and Braylon Edwards, were facing expiring contracts. Both had great seasons, and with limited cap space, the Jets were faced with a choice between the two receivers, both of whom were demanding #1 WR money, in the range of $8-10 million per year. The team simply could not afford to pay both receivers what they were demanding, so they had to pick one or the other. Here was why they picked Holmes:
Santonio Holmes was acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers for a 5th round pick. Holmes had issues with marijuana before, and had been suspended by the league for four games. Since that time though, and continuing through today, Holmes has remained out of the spotlight for those same nefarious reasons. He had been, at the time, a model citizen on-and-off the field. In addition, in a three week stretch, he had these three game-winning catches:
He also had catches such as this one:
Like I said, Holmes had never gotten in trouble with the law since he joined the Jets. Edwards, on the other hand, was arrested for a puniching a friend of LeBron James two days before he was traded to the Jets, in addition to a DWI while with the team, with D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Vernon Gholston in the backseat. After the Jets chose Holmes, he was then arrested again in his connection with a Michigan bar fight, although he was ultimately not charged.
The point I'm trying to make, is that at the time, the team could not have selected both due to their financial demands. By the time Edwards had lowered his demands enough, he had been replaced by a newly signed Plaxico Burress, and had just been arrested, not exactly a good way to market yourself to a team. At the time, Tone Time looked to be a bigger playmaker, and it was simply unforeseeable how he, and the rest of the team, would melt down at the end of 2011.
All of that said, I hope Braylon Edwards proves over the next three weeks why the Jets should have chosen him, but all things considered, and especially looking at his health and career in San Francisco and Seattle, there's little reason to believe he will.