The Buffalo Bills announced they signed former Los Angeles Rams offensive lineman David Edwards to a one-year contract. The value of the deal was not disclosed.
Edwards joins the long list of free agents the Rams have lost in the past week, names that include Nick Scott, Greg Gaines and Baker Mayfield. Los Angeles’ offensive line woes have been well-documented and part of their struggles was Edwards’ lack of availability as he only managed to appear in four games during the 2022 season due to the two concussions he suffered.
Edwards was eventually shut down for the season, though it looks like he overcame his injuries as evidenced by his signing with the Bills. Buffalo’s roster remains one of the best overall in the league, but adding someone like Edwards to their o-line gives them great depth for the 2023 campaign. There’s also some familiarity for Edwards and the Bills as their offensive line coach Aaron Kromer was with him during his first two years with the Rams.
Originally a fifth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Edwards made an immediate impact with the Rams his rookie season as he started 10 games and was active for all 16 of them. The following year he started 14 out of the 16 games and built on that momentum by starting all regular season and playoff games in 2021. The guard was part of the Super Bowl LVI championship team, holding down the line for Matthew Stafford in the biggest game of their careers.
Although Edwards isn’t a top-tier player at his position by any stretch, he’s still a quality starter for most teams which leaves Los Angeles with yet another question to answer ahead of next season. The Rams were able to re-sign Coleman Shelton to a two-year deal earlier in free agency, so he’ll presumably slide in to replace Edwards. Other options could include second-year player Logan Bruss, who should be 100 percent healthy following ACL surgery, or perhaps a rookie lineman should the Rams choose to go that route in the 2023 NFL Draft.
With the defense suffering so many losses in the offseason, Sean McVay is going to have to rely on his offense to win games though that becomes more difficult if the o-line has a similar look to this past season. Without quality play up front, McVay’s offense will have a lot of trouble moving the chains so it’ll be interesting to see how he and the front office address this issue in the coming months.
