(Image source: Braylon Edwards Foundation)

BY JIM FLINK

On the field -- he’s struggling. Off the field -- he’s a star. San Francisco 49ers’ wideout Braylon Edwards isn’t making much of an impact in fantasy leagues. In real-life, he’s changed the lives of dozens of kids by making good on a promise he made six years ago.

Here’s The San Francisco Chronicle.

“Edwards offered 100 junior high students from Cleveland a $10,000 scholarship for college if they completed high school with a 2.5 grade point average and performed 15 hours of community service. 1,100 students applied and of the 100 students selected, 79 are now in college with the help of Edwards’ scholarships. That puts Edwards’ total scholarship costs at $790,000; his base salary with the 49ers this year is $1 million.”

Edwards made that promise right after signing a five-year, $40 million contract with the Cleveland Browns. He then got traded to the New York Jets -- before signing with the 49ers this season.

Still -- the Detroit Free Press notes -- a promise is a promise.

“Seventy-nine kids held up their end of the bargain. So Edwards had no problem paying up, even though he's two teams removed from the Browns. But Edwards didn't just sit idly by and wait to see who would make it. He was active in the students' high school careers, helping provide supplies and even laptops.”

Since making the pledge, Edwards’ career has hit some snags. A DWI last year in New York. This year -- a bum knee has curbed his performance -- significantly.

Still, he tells ESPN’s Rick Reilly -- he hasn’t forgotten what’s really important.

Edwards: “You make mistakes in life and you learn from them.  This is something I didn’t hide from the kids.  Everytime something happened, I broke it down to the kids. and talked about it.  I wasn’t hiding from it.”

Reilly: “Whatever his sins, for these 79 kids, Braylon Edwards didn’t drop the ball.  His vision now occupies dorm rooms on 22 campuses in the United States.”

So, Edwards hasn’t led a perfectly model life. Still, an SB nation blogger says, criticize Edwards if you want for his on-field performance. This promise keeper has character.

“We spend so much time focused on how players perform on the field and we are quick to criticize them when they have personal failings. However, it is nice to be able to recognize Braylon for what is a pretty impressive contribution to society. “

Rant Sports agrees, noting... it’s hard not to love a player who recognizes he’s got it good, and wants to make that happen for others.

“It just proves there are still good people in this world who realize other people need our help. Edwards knew he was given a good chance to exceed in life and now 79 other people will have the same opportunity.”

ESPN notes, Cleveland high schools suffer a 50% dropout rate, which is part of the reason Edwards and his mother set up the Advance 100 Foundation -- which funded the scholarships.