On June 6th, 2011 Plaxico Burress will be given his freedom and released from prison. There is plenty of speculation as to where he may end up; there is small chance he returns to the Giants as GM Jerry Reese has yet to rule out the possibility, however with all due respect to fans of that team, it is not likely that Plaxico returns as the rift between him and the organization is just too great. Commissioner Roger Goodell has been in the business of giving high profile players a second chance within the NFL over the past few seasons. First there was Tank Johnson, Adam “Pacman” Jones, and then of course Mike Vick. The next addition to this club should be WR Plaxico Burress. It is likely that Goodell welcomes Plaxico back after his sentence due to the fact that Plax’s crime was not nearly as severe as either Tank Johnson, Pacman’s, or Mike Vicks actions.

Returning to the NFL after a long stint away from the game is no easy feat even for a Pro-Bowl caliber athlete. When one is away from the league it is virtually impossible to stay in proper “game-day shape”. This means to attain the proper workout, and proper nutritional intake. This is difficult for some pros to do with the help of trainers motivating them on field. So it is needless to say that away from the game/in jail Plaxico’s body is not quite ready to go. But this doesn’t mean he will be a failure; see Mike Vick. Upon his re-emergence in the league in the 2009-2010 season Vick was quite sluggish, quite out of shape, and quite a bit slower than he used to be, reducing his effectivity to almost zero. One season later Vick had gotten back into the proper NFL routine (eating right, working out properly, studying film, etc.). This offseason proved in-valuable to Mr.Vick, as he came back truly ready to compete and had the best season of his career. This effect can also go the other way however as Pacman Jones and Tank Johnson have yet to regain shadows of their former brilliance.

The difference I see between Plaxico Burress and all of these returning players is the age at which he is returning. Plaxico is 33, he will be turning 34 next season. Vick re entered the league at 29, Pacman at 25, and Tank Johnson at 26. 2/3 of these players at younger ages were unsuccessful in their returns to the league so it stands to reason that Plax will have some difficulties regaining his former self. Although the WR position is one that can be played at a high skill level at an older age, it is played that way due to an accumulated wisdom that the greatest WRs have earned over a long period of time I.E. Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, Jimmy Smith, Hines Ward, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss. Re-entering the league after a 2 year absence it is safe to say that Plaxico has had a gap in his construction of wisdom of what it is to be a WR in the NFL. Those years could have gone quite a distance in the further recognition of coverage, and route running for the Star (who knows how good he could have been regardless of a dismal 2008 season), now he looks to enter the league 2 years behind any player in his class I simply do not like his chances to regain his former glory. After all how much time is your franchise going to be willing to spend on regaining a 34 year old’s skill in a league that defines that age as obsolete.