THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. &ndasah; Super Bowl hero Plaxico Burress is done for the year.
The New York Giants fined and suspended Burress on Tuesday for four games - the rest of the regular season - after he accidentally shot himself in the right thigh over the weekend at a Manhattan nightclub. The team also placed him on the reserve non-football injury list, which means the wide receiver couldn't come back for playoffs, either.
The team punished Burress a day after he was charged with illegal weapons possession, which carries a penalty of 3 1/2 to 15 years in prison if he's convicted. Burress is due back in court again on March 31, unless he reaches a plea agreement.
Burress arrived Tuesday morning at Giants Stadium and met individually with Giants president John Mara, general manager Jerry Reese and coach Tom Coughlin. He left for a medical test and returned in the afternoon for another brief session with team officials.
Even as they suspended him for conduct detrimental to the team, Giants officials expressed concern for Burress, who caught a touchdown pass from Eli Manning that gave the Giants a 17-14 Super Bowl win over New England in February.
"As we have said since Saturday morning, our concern is for Plaxico's health and well-being," Mara said. "This is an important time for him to take care of his body and heal up and also deal with the very serious legal consequences and other issues in his life. When I spoke with Plaxico he expressed great remorse for letting down his teammates."
