NFL's Julian Edelman -- PASS THE BATON ... I'm Takin' Over the Orchestra

Tom Brady ain't the only Patriots star who gets to lead ... 'cause star wideout Julian Edelman took his turn calling the shots last night ... conducting the world famous Boston Pops orchestra.

Edelman took over the Symphony Hall stage late Wednesday for the 34th annual "President At Pops" fundraiser and led the orchestra in a grand finale of "Stars and Stripes Forever."

We're told Edelman actually took his gig pretty seriously ... meeting up with veteran conductor Keith Lockhart earlier in the day to get a few pointers.

This isn't the first time a big sports star has picked up a baton for the Pops ... Shaquille O'Neal took on the task back in 2010 and we gotta say ... he left some pretty big (size 22) shoes to fill.

FYI -- We're told Julian did a great job ... the only question left is when is it gonna be Gronk's turn?

Check out the vid.