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For New York Jets fans, watching their favorite team on Sundays for the past 16 years has been a form of torture. Apparently, the feeling is not much different for the players.
Super Bowl champion Plaxico Burress spent 20 months in prison after shooting himself in the thigh with a gun he was illegally carrying at a Manhattan nightclub during the 2008 season while playing for the New York Giants. Burress signed with the Jets in 2011 and said the feeling behind bars was similar to when he suited up for Gang Green.
“They’re both pretty similar because when I walked into prison the first day, I thought, ‘Damn, you’re a fucking loser,'” Burress said during a recent appearance on “The Joint Venture Show.”
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New York Jets wide receiver Plaxico Burress warms up before a game against the San Diego Chargers at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on October 23, 2011. (IMAGES IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
“And I had the same damn feeling every day I walked in the door with the Jets. I was like, ‘Damn, I hope we can win this weekend.’ Loser.”
Burress was on top of the world after catching the winning touchdown in Super Bowl XLII, helping the Giants defeat the undefeated New England Patriots. In the 2007 season, he caught 60 passes for 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns in 16 games.
After that season, he signed a five-year, $35 million contract extension with the Giants.
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New York Jets wide receiver Plaxico Burress scores a touchdown against Oakland Raiders cornerback Chimdi Chekwa during the fourth quarter of their NFL game in Oakland, California on September 25, 2011. (REUTERS)
He was an integral part of the 2008 Giants team, which was 10-1 and the favorite to return to the Super Bowl. He caught 35 passes for 454 yards and four touchdowns in 10 games before shooting himself in the leg.
After being released from prison, he signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the Jets. In 16 games, he caught 45 passes for 612 yards and eight touchdowns for a Jets team that went 8-8 and missed the playoffs.
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New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress caught the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter as the Giants beat the New England Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday, February 3, 2008. (MediaNews Group via Getty Images)
He played one more season with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2012, appearing in just four games before retiring after the season.
For his career, Burress played in 148 games, catching 553 passes for 8,499 yards and 64 touchdowns.
