Who will have a better first year? Trent Edwards or Chris Collins?
DAN MEYER Political Columnist
Who will have a better first year, the Buffalo Bills' quarterback or the Erie County executive? Both represent great hope and promise to many people who live in Western New York.

At the same time, they also have shown some signs of weakness and a few character flaws in the short time they have been in the limelight.

You could say the sky is the limit for two generally easy-to-like guys, but politics does strange things to good people, and being a starting quarterback for a professional football franchise can do some damage to your psyche as well as your body.

So goes life for Trent Edwards and Chris Collins, two men who present pleasant and positive demeanors despite the fact they have some massive weight pushing down on their shoulders because of their new occupations.

Edwards is the latest in what has been a long line of successors to Jim Kelly as the top signal caller for the Buffalo Bills as the franchise struggles to gain credibility in the National Football League and return to the playoffs for the first time since 1999, hopefully some day restoring the glitz and glory that followed the organization during the Kelly-led Super Bowl era of pro football in Western New York.

Collins is the county executive-elect for a region that is in desperate need of true reform and sound leadership. Following eight years of Joel Giambra serving as the county's head honcho - of which the past four have been mostly uneventful sans that infamous red/green budget fiasco that ruined his credibility and essentially ended his political career - this area is looking for someone who can turn things around and help jump-start Erie County's economy, as well as stop the giggling that usually follows whenever county government is mentioned in these parts.

Both Edwards and Collins are viewed by literally thousands as individuals who may possess or be able to obtain "the tools to finish the job," to borrow a famous saying fans of the Buffalo Sabres may remember from a few years back.

So what are the positive and negative characteristics each man carries with him as Edwards looks to finish strong as the NFLregular season heads toward the stretch run and as Collins prepares to set up shop in the big office on the 16th floor of the Rath County Office Building?

Let's break down what we already know about each of them as we try to accurately predict who will have a better first year in their new roles:

• What Edwards has going for him: He's a very smart, down-to-earth individual who values the close relationship he has with his family. He is a leader (the Bills have a 4-1 record as of the writing of this column when Edwards is their starting QB), and that fourth-quarter comeback against the Redskins last weekend could be a defining moment in his career. He also came highly recommended by the late Bill Walsh, considered by many to be a football genius.

• What Edwards has to work on: He hasn't thrown for many touchdowns (just one scoring pass in his short career) and has a history of getting injured that dates back to high school. He also was not heartily endorsed by Lee Evans, arguably the Bills' best offensive player, who said earlier this year he preferred catching passes from J.P. Losman. Edwards also plays for a team that is very young and inexperienced.

• What Collins has going for him: He's not a career politician, he seems genuinely concerned about the dismal state of our economy, he wants to introduce some true reform to the county level of our local government, and he ran an inspiring and thought-provoking campaign.

• What Collins needs to work on: He's taken a few hits lately for the apparent lack of minorities on his transition team and by placing a few folks on the county payroll before he's even been sworn into office. He also endorsed the pie-in-the-sky plan to build a new football stadium on the waterfront, showing he may need to take a few lessons on when to speak and when to just listen.

The best thing that Edwards and Collins have going for them? Neither one is named Losman or Giambra.

(Daniel Meyer is a columnist for the Weekly Independent Newspapers of Western New York. Comments on this column can be sent via e-mail to: meyersmusings@gmail.com. Opinions expressed here are those of the author.)