Does ex-convict Plaxico Burress have a future in the NFL?

The former star wide receiver is looking for work, after 20 months in the slammer. His agent insists Burress is a "top free agent," but will any teams agree?

Former New York Giant Plaxico Burress leaves a New York state prison Monday, after a 20-month stint for carrying a loaded gun in a Manhattan nightclub.
(Image credit: Kevin Colton/Icon SMI/Corbis)

Former New York Giants star wide receiver Plaxico Burress was released from prison Monday, after serving 20 months for carrying a loaded gun into a New York City nightclub. As part of his parole, Burress will have to find and keep a job, and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, is sure he'll find one... back in the NFL. "He's going to be a top free agent," Rosenhaus says. "There are going to be multiple teams interested in signing him." Is that realistic, or just wishful thinking?

Burress is a bad bet: There are some teams that might take a chance on the 34-year-old has-been, says Mike Tuck at ESPN Radio. But "Burress just isn't worth the headache." In fact, though people remember him for his aging highlight reels, "he was barely worth it when he was good, young, and healthy." Since he's none of those things now, I don't expect the gamble "to pay off well."

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