30 greatest Pittsburgh Steelers of the 2000s
By Tommy Jaggi
24. Plaxico Burress, WR (2000)
It’s almost hard to believe Plaxico Burress was drafted over 19 years ago. Some of the earliest Steelers football I can remember consisted of Plaxico Burress and Hines Ward at receiver.
Burress was a massive wide receiver at 6’5” and 232 pounds, according to Pro Football Reference. In today’s game, he may have been a player that would have made the transition to a ‘move’ tight end.
Regardless, Plaxico was a big-bodied target for Ben Roethlisberger in his rookie season. Ben actually didn’t arrive until four years after Burress had already been with the team. Because of this, some of Burress’s prime years were spent with Kordell Stewart and Tommy Maddox at the helm.
Despite below-average quarterback play, Burress was still able to manage a 1,000-yard season, a 1,300-yard season, and an 860-yard season before Ben’s arrival in 2004. He also reeled in 17 touchdowns during this time.
He played one year with Roethlisberger before joining Eli Manning and the New York Giants. Over the next three seasons in New York, he would go on to average 1,000 yards and nearly 10 touchdowns per season.
Burress missed the entire 2009 and 2010 season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. In 2012, Burress returned to the Steelers as a 35-year old veteran. He played four more games in Pittsburgh and added one more touchdown to his resume before retiring.