T.J. Edwards came to Wisconsin in 2014 as a two-star inside linebacker out of Illinois and redshirted his freshman year.
Once the 2015 season kicked off, and Edwards stepped foot on the field, his impact was immediately felt.
Looking back on his career now, his numbers are some of the most impressive we’ve ever seen in Madison, Wis. at the inside linebacker position.
Freshman year: 13 starts, 84 tackles, 6.5 tackles-for-loss and one forced fumble. After the season he was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team and overall was a leading force on the Badgers’ defense that ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring and No. 2 in yards-per-game allowed.
Sophomore year: 12 starts, a team-high 89 tackles, 8.5 tackles-for-loss, three sacks and three interceptions.
Junior year: 14 starts, 81 tackles, 11 tackles-for-loss, two sacks, four interceptions and one pick-six. His impressive performance during the season helped to lead the Badgers to one of their best seasons in school history as they finished 13-1 and came within a touchdown drive in the Big Ten Championship of making the College Football Playoff. After the year he was named as a finalist for the Butkus award and a first team All-American.
Senior year: 13 starts, 112 tackles, 11.5 tackles-for-loss, three sacks and three interceptions.
In total, Edwards finished his career with 52 starts, 366 tackles, 37.5 tackles-for-loss, eight sacks, 10 interceptions and led the Badgers to a 42-12 record during his four years.
Despite all of his college success, Edwards was not selected in the 2019 NFL Draft and subsequently signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent.
Then, after having a strong camp and preseason, he became one of the two post-draft signees to make the week one roster in Philadelphia.
Beginning the year playing primarily special teams, the former Badger didn’t have high expectations during his first season. If it weren’t for moves made by the team and injuries to other players at the position, he probably wouldn’t have cracked the starting lineup.
Those moves and injuries–the team releasing Zach Brown, Nigel Bradham missing four games with an ankle injury and a season-ending injury for Kamu Grugier-Hill–pushed Edwards into the starting role alongside Nate Gerry as the Eagles reached the final stretch of their season.
Once he finally cracked the starting lineup and began seeing the field regularly, the Lake Villa, Illinois product exceeded all expectations.
He finished the season with four starts and 19 tackles, 14 of those unassisted, and was rated by ProFootballFocus as by far the Eagles’ best linebacker of the season with an impressive grade of 86.6.
Looking forward to the 2020 campaign, Edwards is projected to begin the year as a starter alongside Gerry as both Bradham and Grugier-Hill are now gone from the team. Despite the Eagles’ offseason moves of signing linebacker Jatavis Brown and hybrid linebacker/safety Will Parks, people should expect to see Edwards on the field early and often for the talented Philadelphia defense.