Save for quarterback Derek Anderson, no one on the Browns best exemplifies the drastic changes in the team -- all positive -- from a year ago more than Braylon Edwards.

Edwards' first two seasons with the Browns had been good ones, to be sure. As a rookie in 2005, the No. 3 overall draft choice played in just 10 games, starting seven, before his year ended prematurely with a knee injury -- just as he seemed to be really catching his stride. He finished with 32 receptions for 512 yards (16.0 yards-per-catch average) and three touchdowns.

His final game -- against Jacksonville, in which he got hurt in the fourth quarter -- may have been his most complete of the year, as he caught five passes for 86 yards and two scores. The Jaguars simply couldn't cover him. He looked like a man among boys.

Edwards got to play a full season in 2006, and his numbers improved dramatically. He nearly doubled his number of catches, getting 61, and did double his TDs, with six.

But it was a frustrating season for the Browns. After going 6-10 in 2005, a two-win jump over '04, they thought '06 would be even better. Turned out, though, that it was worse, as they duplicated the 4-12 mark of 2004.

So instead of moving forward, the Browns were, in fact, going backward, especially on offense, as they were shut out once and held in single digits scoring in four of their final six games.

Nobody seemed more bothered by that than Edwards. After being on winning teams at Michigan -- in his final two seasons, the Wolverines captured one Big Ten championship and shared another -- he wasn't used to the losing.

But the fortunes for both Edwards and the Browns altered dramatically in 2007. He turned into what the Browns always thought he could be, catching 80 passes and setting franchise season records for receiving yards (1,289) and TD catches (16) en route to making the Pro Bowl. He was a major reason why the Browns completely reversed their fortunes, nearly making the AFC playoffs with a 10-6 record, their best since 1994.

"We're going into this season way ahead of where we were last year at this time," he said. "We put in a lot of stuff offensively last year, and we had a rough and raw beginning.

"But we got it going. By the end of the year, we were one of the best offenses in the league. We just need to fine-tune stuff now. I'm very confident that will be in the top three this year."

Why?

"For one thing, (Derek Anderson) is the guy, and it's very important to go into the season knowing who the guy is at quarterback," Edwards said. "Knowing that, you can sit down with him and break down film, develop a chemistry and get to know each other.

"We're confident in DA, and we're confident in ourselves."

Part of that confidence comes from the fact the receiving corps added a new member with the signing of free-agent wideout Donte' Stallworth of the New England Patriots.

"He's a high-energy guy," Edwards said. "Having him in there will create mismatches for us.

"When you walk around the locker room and see people like Donte Stallworth, you get excited."

The excitement is shared by the rest of the country. The Browns are scheduled for five prime-time national TV games, the most in their history, including three appearances on Monday Night Football, tying for the most.

"It's pretty exciting," Edwards said. "Everybody knows about us now. We're the team people want to watch. People gave us this schedule for a reason. They trust us to have a good season and to be entertaining.

"Now we've got to go out and deliver."