Graphic: Igor Lazarevic
The Paris Football Team, the European League of Football’s (ELF) newest and most anticipated member, has signed former Barcelona Dragons quarterback Zach Edwards for the 2023 season.
This year, while paired with Washington State (NCAA, DI) alumnus Kyle Sweet, Edwards was borderline unstoppable. As he went on a crusade to help his team reach the playoffs for the first time ever, Edwards threw for a league-leading 3,325 yards and 36 touchdowns while rushing for a further 549 yards and four touchdowns. He was widely considered to have been deserving of the league MVP but narrowly missed out to Sean Shelton.
Not only will Edwards now be reunited with Sweet in Paris, but also with one of his favorite targets in 2021, French wideout Remi Bertellin, who was able to amass 750 yards and seven touchdowns in just nine games.
Of his signing, Edwards commented:
I loved the energy Coach Mattioli and the ownership group had throughout the whole process. Their vision, ideas and hunger really resonated and I’m excited to get this project started. The opportunity to team up with Kyle and Remi again was something I valued a lot as well’.
Up until now the young Minnesotan quarterback’s success, and his European football experience in general, has solely been centered in Spain after coming to the country back in 2021 to play for the L’Hospitalet Pioners in Spain’s second league.
Edwards went on to win a Spanish championship with the Pioners in his first season before being snapped up by the Dragons in the ELF and cementing his name firmly in European football with two outstanding seasons that positioned him as the league’s all-time leading passer in all categories.
The young, electric St. Scholastica College (NCAA, DIII) alumnus will now be taking the next step in his Euro career and joining a team in one of the most iconic cities in the world. Look for Matiolli to utilize Edwards’ big-play ability as the Paris Football Team causes havoc across the league in the upcoming season.
Edwards threw for over 400 yards and 5 TDs versus the Cologne Centurions