Plaxico Burress Signs With New York Jets

Here’s the first look at Plaxico in green:

Plaxico Burress will be returning to New York, but not to play for his old team. The giant veteran wide receiver, recently re-instated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after serving a prison sentence, is signing with the New York Jets according to a report by Adam Schefter. Burress most recently played football two seasons ago and is now 33 years old.

Burress was charged with two counts of felony possession of a weapon and one count of felony reckless endangerment in 2008 after he accidentally shot himself in the leg in a nightclub. He did not have a legal concealed carry permit and entered a plea deal that would see him serve two years in prison. He was released from prison on June 6.

For more on the Steelers, check out Behind The Steel Curtain.

Burress spent 90 minutes talking with Giants head coach Tom Coughlin, general manager Jerry Reese and owner John Mara. Burress and Coughlin did not have the best of relationships during the receiver’s time with the team. But Reese indicated that their interest in signing Burress is real.

At 34, Burress appears ready to get back into the NFL and play as if he never left it.

Let’s hope he signs somewhere soon, because the amount of text that’s been spewed about Burress this offseason is way out of proportion with what I have to imagine is his current level of talent. The guy is about to turn 34, and he hasn’t played in the NFL since the 2008 season.

For more on the Steelers, check out Behind The Steel Curtain. For more on the Giants, check out Big Blue View.

According to Mort’s report, Burress could be looking at a $10 million deal over two years.

At least until Friday at 6:00 p.m. (ET) when full free agency is open and players can openly sign. Right now, it’s just a negotiation period.

So the two sides can’t physically meet until Friday night but because NFL free agency is such a fluid situation it’s possible Burress (or the Giants) will have already moved on by that point. Reportedly, Tom Coughlin and Co. want to check Burress’ mental state and gauge his interest in returning to New York.

Still, Burress going back to New York is not out of the question. There are a few things to keep in mind with this visit.

Second, can the Giants even have him in for a visit? This is a unique year and it’s unclear if, during this week of pre-free agency, teams can have players in for a visit. Some think players can’t visit teams until Friday at 6:00 p.m. (ET) when full free agency opens.

It’s pretty surprising that the Giants would bother as Burress will turn 34 before the season starts. He’s now past the age where he’s likely to be an impact player as a receiver, and that’s before considering that he spent the better part of the last two years in a cell. Then there’s the fact that Burress was bad-mouthing Coughlin in the press just a couple weeks ago. Given that Burress didn’t exactly have a reputation for being a team player the first time he was with the Giants, it’s hard to understand why Coughlin would want him back.

Ed Valentine at Big Blue View raises the possibility that this could all be public relations on the Giants’ parts, wanting to seem open-minded to the possible return of a star player, when in actuality they don’t want him at all. That sounds like a conspiracy theory, but in this case, I think it actually makes some sense.

Burress has also expressed interest in playing with the Jets, Texans and Eagles, so teams on the West Coast can likely look forward to an interview where he says he’d love to play with them in the near future.

In all seriousness, this is sound career planning from Burress. He last played football in 2008 before serving two years for accidentally shooting himself in the leg with an unlicensed handgun, and he’ll be 34 by the time the season starts, whenever that is.

Whether he’s ready to hit the field right away and be in football condition still remains to be seen. But he certainly does appear to want to play for a team that will be in playoff contention right now.

Burress posted “What’s up Philly?” on Thursday before going on to say that he’s been hanging out with Eagles wideout DeShawn Jackson -- who is apparently “mad funny” -- and that he’s ready to sign with the Eagles as soon as they will have him.

SB Nation’s Eagles blog Bleeding Green Nation believes it’s probably a joke, at least the part about Burress wanting to sign with Philadelphia as soon as the lockout ends, but Pro Football Talk’s Gregg Rosenthal isn’t as skeptical.

Ten months later, after being cut by the team for which he delivered a Super Bowl, Burress was sentenced to two years in prison for two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and one count of reckless endangerment. Suddenly, he had not only lost his dream, but also his freedom.

“Everything just happened so fast,” Burress said in his first interview with NFL.com since the ruling. “To go on the other side of that wall, and be on the inside of that fence, knowing what your world and your life is supposed to be like on the other side. And when they close that door behind you, you say to yourself ‘Is this really serious?’”

The amount of speculation about Burress has been way out of line with his actual likely impact on the field. Philly.com notes that, for all the talk about Burress, he remains a low priority for most NFL teams. As he should be - yes, he was once an exciting player, but now he’s 33, an age when most receivers are past their prime, and he’s spent two years away from the game.

The good news is for Eagles fans who want Burress is that McLane has flipped the script. He’s now saying there’s interest there from the Eagles side.

So Burress to Philly isn’t so crazy after all, despite what the AP says. The only thing we need now is to end the lockout so some team can actually make a move on him.

Did you hear the rumor about Plaxico Burress joining the Eagles? Yes? No? It really doesn’t matter, because it appears that Philadelphia is not terribly interested in the recently-freed wide receiver.

Of course, management can change its mind between now and the beginning of the 2011 season. Or 2012 season. or whenever they start playing football again.

So could Burress remain in New York playing football? Anything’s possible but, according to the NY Daily News, Burress wants to get out of the city.

This makes a lot of sense. Burress does, as his friend and former teammate RB Brandon Jacobs said, need a fresh start. New York is not the place to get that.

The latest is the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade, who has a suggestion for Burress.

The oddsmakers say the Bears are one of the top three possible destinations for Burress so it’s not that far off. That said, as SB Nation Chicago pointed out, there are reasons to think Burress to the Bears won’t happen.

That said, Clark Judge of CBSSports.com wrote a story on Tuesday morning citing several reasons why Burress won’t be a Bird.

We’re still in the speculative stages of figuring out where Burress will land so plenty of things can (and probably will) change.

Plaxico Burress was released from a New York state prison on Monday morning, and called it a “beautiful day” when he spoke to the throng of reporters waiting for him on the outside. It’s good to have Plax back. If nothing else, this gives us an excuse to take a break from the NFL Lockout to let our minds have some fun.

First, we get to imagine where Plaxico might play next season. Second, we get relive one of the most ridiculous celebrity crimes of the 21st century.

Of course, Burress’ future depends on two key factors. First, what kind of shape is he in? He hasn’t caught a pass since November of 2008 so that’s a big question that needs to be answered. Second, when will the NFL lockout end? It would be difficult for a team to sign Burress and teach him the offense if the lockout extends into August or September.

So Burress is finally out but, thanks to the lockout, we’ll be waiting to find out where he lands next. Check out another list of potential landing spots for Burress.

Burress called Monday’s release a “beautiful day” for him and says he’ll be ready when the NFL lockout is over.

Whether he’ll be ready or not is yet to be decided. Burress hasn’t caught a pass since November of 2008 after spending nearly two years behind bars on a gun charge. We’re still in the middle of the lockout so he’ll have some time to continue to get in shape in order to be ready to go whenever the lockout is lifted.

The Eagles and Rams are teams often linked to him though it’s unclear if they’re legitimately interested. A lockout lasting until August or September could hurt Burress as teams wouldn’t have much time to sign him and get him acclimated to their offense.

However it works out, step one is done. He’s getting out of prison. Step two is finding a new team.

Burress now enters a football world much different than the one he left. NFL owners and players are currently involved in a labor dispute and the players are locked out. That means Burress can’t sign with any teams right away. This could be a good thing as it gives him some time to see where he’s at from a conditioning standpoint before preparing for free agency.

Agent Drew Rosenhaus was waiting at the prison when he walked out and, shortly before greeting him, addressed reporters. One interesting note from that media session is that Rosenhaus says not to rule out the Giants as a possibility. For Rosenhaus, he’s interested in securing the best contract for Burress so it makes sense that he’ll create as much competition for his services as possible.

He applied for a work release last year but that was denied so he’s been waiting for this date for a while. Burress will exit prison as a free agent after the Giants released him. With the NFL lockout, he won’t be signing with anyone right away but there are reportedly teams interested.

Burress’ task once he’s released will be to get back into football shape. With nearly three years away from the game, that will be a pretty significant part of his return. He’s also turning 34 years old in August so the odds are stacked against him to be successful.