Plaxico Burress is having a meeting with Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, ESPN reports, and appears likely to head to a team he’s played for before, either the Steelers or the New York Giants.
We’ve discussed this a lot this year and it still doesn’t make any sense for Burress to come to Pittsburgh if he wants playing time. The Steelers have two established starters in Mike Wallace and Hines Ward, and even if Ward needs to be replaced at some point, the Steelers have two perfectly capable third options in Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown. Ben Roethlisberger’s whining about wanting a tall receiver aside, the Steelers have no particular need for Plaxico.
If he wants to come cheaply, and the Steelers can just cut him in training camp, then I suppose there’s no harm, but it’s hard to see where this makes sense for anyone. Burress isn’t young and has spent the past two years in jail; there’s really no reason to expect a vintage season from him.
Also, the Steelers have signed Chris Dieker, an undrafted free agent quarterback out of Southern Illinois. With Roethlisberger, Dennis Dixon, Charlie Batch and Byron Leftwich all ahead of him, Dieker is highly unlikely to see the field for the Steelers anytime soon.
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