What If Plaxico Burress Didn’t Shoot Himself?

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Without Nicks in 2011, are the Giants able to get past the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers in the 2012 playoffs? Without Pro Bowler and team captain Rolle, is the defense able to keep Tom Brady in check during Super Bowl XLVI?

Odds are the Giants would’ve parted ways with Plaxico after 2009 or 2010, so he wouldn’t have gone to a potential third Super Bowl as a Giant. Burress would’ve been 32 in 2009, a year in which the Giants featured “Jet Blue” – the wide receiving trio of Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, and Mario Manningham – that carried over into 2010. Plaxico doesn’t seem the kind of player who would willingly go along with that arrangement.

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What would Plaxico’s numbers look like in 2009 and 2010? Well, take a look at what he was able to produce as a 34-year-old with the New York Jets in 2011. He caught 45 passes for 612 yards (third best on the team) and 8 touchdowns (tied for team-lead) on a roster that had one other legitimate receiver, Santonio Holmes. If Burress played nice with the newbies in Manningham, Smith, and Nicks, it’s possible he puts up similar figures with the Giants in 2009 and 2010, but would that be enough to hold on to Plax? Could he have lasted for a third Super Bowl ring?

TLDR – If Plaxico Burress didn’t shoot himself in the leg, he would’ve stayed with the New York Giants through at least 2010 and would’ve won another division title and a second Super Bowl ring with the team.