Plaxico Burress Gets Five-Year Extension With Giants

Plaxico Burress wanted a new deal before the regular season started, and he got one with just a few minutes to spare.

The 31-year-old Burress signed a five-year, $35 million contract with the Giants yesterday that will pay him $11 million in salary and bonuses this year. That’s a healthy raise over the $3.5 million he had been due this season. In fact, it’s more than the $10.5 million he would’ve been owed on the last three years of his deal.

And he got it done just a few minutes before 4 p.m., the deadline for the contract to take effect in time for Thursday night’s game.

“We always remained hopeful that it would get done before the season started,” Giants GM Jerry Reese said in a statement released by the team. “It came down to the last few minutes and we’re happy to get it done so we can move forward in our season. It took a little longer than we expected it to take, but Plax was professional about it the whole time.”

Actually, Burress went public with his desire for a new contract and his frustration over the pace of negotiations back in June, when he refused to participate in the Giants’ mandatory minicamp. Then, when training camp began, he remained sidelined due to a right ankle injury he said he suffered a couple of weeks before camp began, although some suspected that was partly a negotiating ploy.

Still, the sides kept talking and eventually, after arriving at the stadium yesterday, Burress signed a deal that will keep him in New York until 2012, when he’s 35. The deal is not quite up to par with those of some of the NFL’s other top receivers - such as Larry Fitzgerald (four years, $40 million), Javon Walker (six years, $55 million), Terrell Owens (three years, $27 million) and Randy Moss (three years, $27 million) - but still pretty good for a player who has battled injuries to both ankles, a knee, a shoulder and a finger over the last two years.

What Burress got was also a reward for the 70 catches for 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns (plus a game-winning catch in Super Bowl XLII) he had despite torn ligaments in his right ankle last year.

“He is a big-play threat for us on the field,” Reese said. “Plax opens things up for other people and he obviously can make big plays himself. Eli has all of his weapons intact and we expect them to pick up where they left off last season.”

- Ralph Vacchiano, NY Daily News