Read Sports Geek and Loyal Homer’s opinions.
Currently, there are two rather controversial, but highly productive, wide receivers who are actively seeking an new opportunity in the National Football League – free agent Plaxico Burress and the Denver Broncos’ Brandon Marshall.
Are either of these receivers worth bringing into an organization, or are teams better left looking elsewhere for their talent?
To help answer that question, I (Bleacher Fan) will be arguing that Plaxico Burress is a talent worth signing.
Sports Geek will argue that Brandon Marshall, who publicly asked for a trade from Denver last week, is worth the pursuit and sacrifice necessary to bring him into an organization.
Loyal Homer will argue that neither are worth signing, and teams should avoid these two at all costs.
Make sure to check back throughout the day to read each perspective, then vote for person you feel made the strongest case for their side.
This should be a no-brainer. In fact, as GM for an NFL organization, signing Plaxico Burress ranks on the common sense scale just above ‘never carry a loaded gun in your sweatpants when visiting a New York City nightclub’! FOLLOW COMMON SENSE!!!
The guy did something stupid… okay, REALLY stupid.
Be honest, though… we have ALL done something stupid at least once. I know I have. I can remember playing around with a new set of kitchen knives I got when I dropped one of them, taking a 2-inch gash out of my leg! Or consider my Dad (Happy Father’s Day, Pop!), who has a scar on his chin that he ‘earned’ as a little boy. He and his brother got a bullet from a friends’ house and had the brilliant idea to wedge said bullet into a sidewalk crack and take turns hitting it with a hammer (it’s a wonder I even made it into this world)! Not surprisingly, the bullet exploded and a piece of it hit my dad in the chin, with the other piece hitting my uncle in the chest (don’t worry, both survived the incident). People do STUPID things all the time!
And it’s not like Burress got away with his stupidity… he was shot in the leg, suspended from his team, forced to pay hundreds-of-thousands of dollars in fines, and lost millions from his contract. I HOPE he learned his lesson!
He’s also been involved in contract disputes, though he’s not the first or the last to do that. Unfortunately, that is the nature of today’s professional athlete, and not a character flaw held solely by Plaxico Burress.
So the reasons not to sign Burress are because he did something stupid, and he’s trying to squeeze every last penny he can out of the NFL – but none of those reasons take away the fact that he is an AMAZING wide receiver!
Since being drafted eighth overall in the 2000 NFL draft, Burress has amassed 7,845 receiving yards on 505 receptions, averaging 15.5 yards per catch. He has also caught 55 touchdowns, fumbled only nine times, and has broken the 1,000-yard receiving mark four times. Compare that to Brandon Marshall, who averages only 12.8 yards per catch, and has already fumbled 7 times in 3 short years!
In 2007, Plaxico’s last complete season, he caught 70 passes for 1,025 yards (14.6 yards per catch), and 12 touchdowns. Marshall, in that same season, caught 102 catches for 1,325 yards (only 13.0 per catch), and only seven touchdowns. In this case, quantity does not outweigh quality.
Plaxico Burress makes his team a winner. The New York Giants WITH Plaxico were the best team in the NFL, hands down. In 2007 they won the Super Bowl, and in 2008 they began the season 10-1. Following his suspension, the Giants finished the season with a dismal 2-3 record, capping off their season with an 11-23 playoff loss to division rival Philadelphia.
He’s able to catch virtually anything. At 6-feet 5-inches he can reach places defenders cannot. The Giants knew this. That’s why, when trailing by four points with only 0:39 left on the clock in Super Bowl XLII, they executed a fade pass to Burress in the corner of the end zone. The play worked then as it had all year. He caught the ball, and the Giants won the championship.
The amazing thing about that play, though, was that EVERYONE knew the play was coming, including the New England Patriots. The Patriots, powerless to stop it, watched helplessly as Burress ended their perfect season.
That is what makes Plaxico Burress a dominant Wide Receiver, and that is why he should be signed immediately!
I really had planned to comment on the actual debate, but in leau of the sidewalk bullet story, i just had to comment and say that i really enjoyed it. I no longer feel quite so bad about some of things i did when i was young.
And for the record, i’d take Burress. However, there might be some creative clauses in the contract to cover myself.
What kind of creative clauses?
Happy to boost your spirits, Scuba Steve!
I wish I could say that was the only time my father had a lapse in common-sense, but alas, I cannot.
Without getting into specifics, let me just say that a storm drain is NOT an effective hiding place during Hide-and-Seek… at least, not according to the fire department!