Former Cardinal quarterback Trent Edwards is a long way from the 2006 Stanford football season. In his first career NFL start, Edwards led the previously winless Buffalo Bills to a spirited 17-14 victory yesterday over the New York Jets, showing both poise and ability in passing for 234 yards, a touchdown and an interception on 22-28 attempts.

Edwards started the game in place of Bills quarterback J.P. Losman, who missed the contest because of a sprained left knee.

Ironically, Edwards teamed with former Cal star running back Marshawn Lynch, who scored a touchdown of his own in the contest.

Edwards may assume the starting position from this point on — even if Losman returns healthy — as Bills head coach Dick Jauron hinted when speaking to the media.

“I’ve always said, nobody’s job is secure,” Jauron said. “From week to week, we play whoever we think is the best guy. So we’ll see where it goes.”

Although Edwards looked poised and confident in winning the Bills their first game of the year, he commented on the work it took to prepare for the first start of his professional career.

“It was a long week of practice both mentally and physically,” he said to NFL.com reporter Chris Brown. “It was a lot harder than anything I’ve ever been through with the game of football. For all that hard work and extra hours that I’ve put in, from being the guy that’s going to be in there from the start was something that was very, very enjoyable after the game.”

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.