Jim Kelly lobbying for Bills to draft Tim Tebow
In hopes of one day being a part of the team’s ownership, former Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly says the Bills should chuck Trent Edwards and consider drafting one of the top three signal callers in April. And if Kelly had his way, he’d lean towards the team selecting Florida QB Tim Tebow.
Kelly said the franchise needs to move on from the benched Trent Edwards, a 2007 third-round pick. Kelly suggested the Bills look hard at positioning themselves to draft University of Florida signal caller Tim Tebow, a two-time BCS national champion whose inspired, all-out play is reminiscent of a left-handed version of Kelly.
“I like Trent personally,” Kelly told USA TODAY. “He works hard. But he’s had three years. It’s time to find somebody who is the future of the Buffalo Bills.
“If I’m the owner, that’s what I’m thinking.
“Whether it’s Tim Tebow, whether they’ll have a shot at him when draft time comes … you have to look at the top three quarterbacks in the draft, really study them. And you look for a guy with good character, good leadership ability and good arm strength — and a guy who doesn’t come from California.
Kelly said the Bills’ experience with quarterbacks from the Golden State haven’t panned out.
The list includes Rob Johnson, who went 4-7 from 1998-2001, J.P. Losman, the 22nd overall pick in 2004, and Edwards, who was benched last week in favor of Ryan Fitzpatrick by interim head coach Perry Fewell following the firing of Dick Jauron.
I must be missing something, because I still don’t see Tebow being a good pro quarterback. He’s a fantastic athlete and he has a role in the NFL – I just don’t think it’s under center. I can’t see him consistently taking three or five step drops and making plays in a pro-style offense. But maybe that’s just me.
That said, I don’t think Kelly is off in his opinions about the Bills. Edwards has had his chances and he hasn’t developed. Granted, his offensive line is incredibly young and needs time to gel, but Edwards hasn’t shown much over the past three years that he can lead the Bills to the postseason.
The Bills need Mike Shanahan to come in and completely blow up the roster. He found Jay Cutler in the draft a couple years ago and even had some success with Brian Griese early in his career. Shanahan has the eye for talent, so if the Bills can persuade him to come to Buffalo, they need to turn everything over to him and just let him rebuild from the ground up.
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