Derrick Burgess Profile Week 5 2006

Derrick Burgess is used to slow starts in the sack department. Over the past three seasons, including 2006, the former third-round selection in the 2001 NFL Draft has netted a combined total of only 1.5 sacks through the first two games of each respective season.This year, he had a grand total of zero 2010 pro bowl Vikings 4 Brett Favre jersey
sacks through two games, to go along with only six total tackles. Then the Cleveland Browns came calling...Despite an agonizing 24-21 loss that saw the relinquish a 21-3 lead, Burgess fell into familiar form, sacking Browns signal caller Charlie Frye twice. He also came away with five tackles, four of them solo. So much for those early-season struggles.Burgess, along with cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, who snagged a pair of interceptions on the day, keyed a relatively impressive defensive effort that featured a surprising abundance of playmaking ability. That's some good news for an 0-3 team that seems incapable of winning an NFL football game and has few reasons for optimism on either side of the football.Granted, the Browns are not exactly an impenetrable fortress when it comes to protecting their quarterback. They had given up 12 sacks through three games, and now sit at 14 sacks for the season, good for 28th in the NFL. But still, the Raiders are team in desperate need of individuals to rally around and emulate, and Burgess could be a perfect fit for that role.If last season is any indication, this is likely just a small taste of what is to come. In 2005, Burgess' first year with the Raiders after a three-year stint with the Philadelphia Eagles, the 6-foot-6 Super Bowl Champions jersey White jersey
2, 260-pound pass-rushing specialist tallied a league-leading 16 sacks. When you factor in the aforementioned slow start in '05, in which he managed to get only one sack through the first three games, it's scary to think of what Burgess is capable of during his second tour of duty in Oakland.Obviously, this is just one game, but there seems to be a pattern in the making here, and that's potentially great news for both Derrick Burgess and the Raiders organization. (17)