The New York Giants were on top of the world at the conclusion of the 2007 NFL season. After going 10-6, Eli Manning and Co. took down the undefeated New England Patriots, 17-14, despite being double-digit underdogs. Former Giants wideout Plaxico Burress caught a 13-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal the win and stopped the first-ever 19-0 season from taking place. It will go down as one of Burress' best NFL seasons, as he caught 70 passes for 1,025 yards and a career-high 12 touchdowns just in the regular season. 

The following year, the Giants looked like they were on the verge of a dynasty. New York was 10-1 and even won its next game against the Washington Redskins to move to 11-1 -- but Burress was not on the field. The former NFL Comeback Player of the Year had accidentally shot himself during the early morning hours of November 28, 2008, and it was an event that marked the end of his Giants career. Burress ended up spending 21 months in the Oneida Corrections Facility after he pled guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon. 

Not only did this incident mark the end of Burress' tenure in New York and the downfall of his career, but it also stopped the Giants from reaching their potential in what was shaping up to be yet another special season. Last week, the New York Post published another one of their "alternative realities in New York sports" pieces, and this one examined what would have happened if Burress had never shot himself. The Giants were maybe in line to start a dynasty, and Burress' former teammates sure believe that. 

"Back-to-back," Former Giants running back Brandon Jacobs told the Post. "We were easily better than every team in the NFL that year. Easily. I'm talking about a touchdown, I'm talking about 10 points better than everybody."

Former Giants defensive captain Justin Tuck echoed Jacobs' feelings as well.

"I thought if Plaxico didn't shoot himself, we were the best team in the NFL that year," Tuck said.

Even former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin said something similar to this. In a 2013 YES Network "CenterStage" interview, he told host Michael Kay: "We were the best team in the NFL at the time of the shooting."

Burress' incident clearly affected the Giants, as they lost three out of their last four games and then fell to the Philadelphia Eagles, 23-11, in the divisional round. The Giants would fail to make the postseason over the next two years before ultimately winning another Super Bowl to cap off the 2011 campaign, but one has to wonder what would have happened if Burress had never shot himself. Would the Giants have won another three Super Bowls? Probably not, but they definitely would have been in a better position to do so, especially during that 2008 season.