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Will Burress' Fantasy Value Soar As A Jet?
As Adam Schefter of ESPN first reported this morning, the New York Jets officially won the Plaxico Burress sweepstakes, as the free agent wide receiver agreed to a one-year deal worth $3.017 million.

Per Schefter, the contract is fully guaranteed. And yes. ... Also according to Schefter, the "17" in the contracted price represents the No. 17 he has worn -- and presumably will wear with the Jets.

The news of Burress landing back in New comes less than 24 hours after the 33-year-old wideout met with the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers, following his initial free agent meeting with the New York Giants.

As Pro Football Weekly noted, the Jets and head coach Rex Ryan don't let baggage get in the way when it's time to acquire talent. Indeed, Ryan has created somewhat of a haven for players that have had off-the-field issues.

And Burress has certainly had his share.

In case you somehow missed it, the veteran wideout served a 20-month prison sentence on gun charges after shooting himself in the leg in a New York nightclub. He was released from prison last month.

Before the shooting incident, he drew more than $100,000 in fines from the Giants and was suspended once for conduct detrimental to the team. Burress also had some issues during his stint with the Steelers.

Of course, Burress never saw eye to eye with Giants head coach Tom Coughlin. Even Bill Cowher, who coached Burress in Pittsburgh, admitted that Burress requires special care. "Let me just say this: I like Plax," Cowher told the New York Daily News. "But there are some things that come with Plax you have to accept."

Ryan knows that.

In fact, a source with knowledge of the process told Profootballtalk.com's Mike Florio, it was “all about Rex” for Plaxico. Ryan sold Burress on the coach’s belief that Plaxico can get them over the top, just as he helped get the Giants over the top four years ago.

But can he?

Burress has not played since 2008, when he caught 35 passes for 454 yards with four touchdowns for the Giants in 10 games.

In the '07 season, the 6-5 receiver had 70 catches for 1,025 yards and 12 scores. He also scored the game-winning touchdown in the Giants' Super Bowl win over the Patriots.

From the Jets' perspective, the move addresses a need.

The Jets re-signed Santonio Holmes last week to a five-year, $50 million deal, but lost Brad Smith via free agency and the arrival of Burress signifies the end of Braylon Edwards' time in New York.

So as National Football Post staffer Matt Bowen suggests, the Jets need a player that can run the deep comeback, slant and down the field route tree in their offense.

What type of production should we expect from Burress?

That's a difficult question to answer at this point. Much will depend on how her performs in training camp. As Bowen noted, the first step will be getting back into some competitive football on the practice field. Burress needs to get in some serious work and compete hard to get back into the flow of the NFL.

He also needs to stay out of the training room and learn the offense on the run.

All that said, from a Fantasy perspective, it seems very safe to assume that Burress can step right into a situational role. According to Bowen, "Think third downs, the red zone, crucial game situations, etc."

But with Edwards and Smith out of the mix, Burress could have a chance at moving up into the starting rotation with Holmes and ahead of Jerricho Cotchery.

Bowen summed up: "If he can win at the line of scrimmage, still press the safety down the field in Cover 2 and use his size to catch the football then we could see plenty of targets for Plax this season."

I agree. ... Assuming he still has all the physical capabilities he had before his prison stint.

If he's able to get out on the field for workouts, avoid injury and demonstrate skills similar to those he possessed pre-prison, there's no doubt Burress can provide Mark Sanchez and the Jets' offense with a dangerous red-zone threat.

And that alone will make him of interest to Fantasy Football owners.