He won't be as lucky, though, when the justice system will likely come down on him, and the NFL and the Jets may come down even harder.
Many have called for the NFL or the Jets — or whoever really — to punish Edwards swiftly. And if that does happen, if Edwards is suspended for an extended period of time, that will just hurt the Jets. And while Edwards has a knack for dropping the football and has basically underachieved since coming out of Michigan, the Patriots can attest firsthand to what kind of problems he has the potential to create for opposing defenses.
This is bad news for a Jets team that showed in Week 1 how downright brutal it can be offensively when things aren't going well. Quarterback Mark Sanchez practically ignored his wide receivers in that loss to the Ravens, and the offense wasn't opened up until this past week, when the Jets looked like a new offense when they started to spread the ball around to all of their receivers. Most notably among them was Edwards.
Edwards abused Darius Butler, the much shorter Patriots cornerback on Sunday, catching five balls, one of them for a touchdown and another for a two-point conversion.
The Jets looked like a new offense, temporarily answering one of their biggest looming questions this season. But then, Edwards decided to drink and drive.
Now, the Jets will likely be without him for some time. Early reports indicate that the Jets, as a team, are not happy with Edwards' negligence and idiocy.
One Jet told the New York Daily News that he was "not surprised" about what happened. Another said "We need him." And one more player rounded out the reaction by saying "There's no excuse for something like that."
Right, right and right.
Edwards has shown in the past an inability to carry himself with the maturity and responsibility expected out of a professional. The Jets do need him, as he's their only vertical threat until the return of Santonio Holmes who is currently serving his own suspension. And there is truly no excuse for what he did, nor is there ever any excuse for drunk driving.
And now, the Jets are left to pick up the pieces. Fresh off a marquee win Sunday against the Patriots, they must deal with yet another self-made distraction, all while questions remain surrounding the health of All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis. For weeks, we had the Hard Knocks saga shoved down our throats. We heard about the Jets' Super Bowl ambitions and we saw head coach Rex Ryan preach the importance of someone else, besides him, stepping up and taking leadership of the team.
Braylon Edwards, however, did the exact opposite of that. With a blood-alcohol level twice the legal limit, he knew what he was doing when he got into his car. Instead of being a leader, helping his team reach the goal we've already heard so much about, Edwards put himself behind the wheel and before the team.
No one was hurt, thankfully, by his stupidity. No one, that is, besides himself and the New York Jets.
