TORONTO — Braylon Edwards is waiting for the ridicule.
The Jets’ wide receiver, who came here with a reputation for dropping too many passes, failed to reel in a gimme in the first half when Mark Sanchez dropped a bomb right into his arms for what would have been an 84-yard TD — and a 10-3 Jets lead.
Edwards, who didn’t have a defender within 10 yards of him, tried to make an over-the-shoulder catch, but the ball grazed his facemask and bounded away.
After the Jets’ 19-13 victory, coach Rex Ryan joked that the team is “either going to have to put stickum on his facemask or he’s going to have to catch that ball with his hands.”
Edwards had an explanation.
“I didn’t see the ball until the last second,” he said. “I know they had a blown coverage. That’s definitely going to be on the blooper reel or Monday Night Football’s ‘Come on man.’ ”
Edwards, who caught three passes for 45 yards, redeemed himself with a 13-yard scoring catch with 44 seconds left in the second quarter. It appeared Edwards had reached over the goal line with the ball after making a catch, but he was ruled down at the 1-yard line. After a booth review, it was called a touchdown.
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Replay was a big factor in the first half.
The Bills challenged a called fumble by quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in the first quarter and got it overturned.
The Jets challenged a potential touchdown catch by receiver David Clowney that was called incomplete though the replay appeared to show he got both feet down inbounds. Their challenge, however, was rebuffed.
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It was a good night for kicker Jay Feely, who had three first-half field goals — from 38, 49, and 31 yards, and a bad first half for left guard Alan Faneca, who allowed two sacks by Bills defensive tackle Kyle Williams.
There was a great alert play by left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson, who recovered a Kellen Clemens fumble after a sack. . . . When fullback Tony Richardson ran for a 19-yard gain in the second quarter, it was his longest run since 2001. Richardson gained his most yards in a game since 2000.
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This trip was a nostalgic one for Ryan, who spent 12 years of his childhood in Toronto.
Ryan, his twin Rob, now the Browns’ defensive coordinator, and his older brother, Jim, lived with his mother in Toronto from 1965 to 1977, while she taught at University of Toronto. Ryan’s mother, Doris, had divorced his father, Buddy, and while Buddy chased his coaching career during that period of time, the boys lived with her in Toronto.
Ryan yesterday took in the Hockey Hall of Fame before the game.
“I never thought I’d see the day where the NFL would be playing a game in Toronto,” Ryan said. “I certainly never envisioned myself coaching a team that would be playing in Toronto. It’s a great town, and, hopefully, we can convert some of those hockey fans to become New York Jets fans.”