Plaxico Burress (born August 12, 1977 in Norfolk, Virginia) is an American football wide receiver for the NFL's New York Giants. After being drafted in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft (8th overall) out of Michigan State, Burress became a full-time starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2001. Burress is a "big-play" threat and was considered to have been a good balance to the Steelers' other starting wide receiver, Hines Ward, who is more of a "possession receiver." Burress also quickly became Ben Roethlisberger's favorite target when Roethlisberger became the Steelers' starting quarterback. However, he has a history of dropping catchable passes and stopping in the middle of his routes, holding him back from the elite status a receiver of his size and abilities might otherwise have.

Burress gained notoriety with his feud with linebacker Ray Lewis' Baltimore Ravens, in which Ravens tight end Shannon Sharpe made light of Plaxico's tendency to get injured by dubbing him "Plexiglass". Additionally Burress became known for a "757" tattoo on his biceps, which he said represented his Norfolk area code.

On January 23, 2005, after the playoff defeat of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Burress announced he would quit the team. On March 17, 2005, he signed a six-year, $25 million contract with the New York Giants. The signing came after both the Giants and Burress's agent broke off negotiations, saying there was no deal to be reached.

On June 2, 2005, a district magistrate in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania issued an arrest warrant for Burress after he failed to appear at a delinquent tax claim hearing. Officials in Moon Township, Pennsylvania alleged that Burress owed more than US$90,000 in back wage taxes to the municipality. The arrest warrant was later rescinded after the magistrate determined that although Burress lived in a house in Moon Township while playing for the Steelers, his legal residence remained in Florida and thus he was never subject to the municipality's wage tax.

Burress had an outstanding campaign in his first season in New York. With up and coming quarterback Eli Manning, Burress caught 76 passes for 1,214 yards. He helped the Giants to claim the division title.

Recently, the media has been reporting a rift developing between Plaxico Burress and his quarterback on the Giants, Eli Manning. Stemming partially from Burress not catching a pass in the 23-0 first round playoff loss to the Carolina Panthers in the 2005-2006 season, he failed to attend a mandatory meeting after the loss, or any optional offseason workouts that following offseason.

External links

• NFL.com - Plaxico Burress
• ESPN.com: Plaxico Burress
• Giants Sign WR Plaxico Burress
• Burris arrest warrant rescinded

1977 births | Living people | African American football players | American football wide receivers | Michigan State Spartans football players | New York Giants players