Born in Madeley, Shropshire, Edwards started his career as an apprentice at Aston Villa, and worked his way up to his first-team debut on 28 December 2002, in a 1–0 home win over Middlesbrough. In January 2003, after playing in three consecutive matches at right-back he signed a new two-and-a-half-year contract with the club. Edwards went on to make nine appearances in total for the "Villans", all during 2002–03. He was sent on loan to Crystal Palace in November 2003, where he spent one month, playing six games and scoring one goal in a 1–1 draw with Coventry City.