In Friday's bad news that Ty Warren would miss the 2010 season was the good news that LB Derrick Burgess would not retire and that the Patriots reinstated him from the reserve/did not report list.
Not surprisingly, the team did not comment on what prompted Burgess to change his mind and decide not to retire, with Bill Belichick saying, "I think that's between Derrick and myself."
Pats Pulpit says that Burgess' decision is "certainly positive."
If Burgess is ready to give 100%, then he becomes a big bonus for the Patriots pass rush. Heading into camp, I expected Burgess to start opposite Tully Banta-Cain in the 3-4 alignment. Now, I'm thinking Burgess goes back to his 2009 role as a top pass rusher in sub-packages and on third downs. Jermaine Cunningham has shown a lot as an every down outside linebacker and in pass coverage, so I think he may be the "starting" outside linebacker.