Jets rookie Burris got to buzz Fitzpatrick's hair after INT

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) Juston Burris' first pro pick cost his quarterback his hair.

Ryan Fitzpatrick revealed in a radio interview Thursday morning that he needed to cut his ''stupid'' hair - a puffy pompadour - and made a bet with teammates that the next player to intercept him in practice would get to give him a ''fresh summer `do.''

That player, Fitzpatrick told the ''Boomer & Carton Show'' on 101.9 WFAN, was Burris.

The fourth-round draft pick out of North Carolina State grabbed a floating pass intended for Brandon Marshall on Tuesday and got his first interception of camp - and sealed the fate of Fitzpatrick's `fro.

''It was right before practice started,'' Burris said after practice Thursday. ''We were in stretch line and a couple of the vets made a bet with him, and I just so happened to get it. I was the one to do it.''

After the interception, Burris went right to safety Rontez Miles, who had set up the bet with Fitzpatrick.

''We talked about it and we laughed about it,'' Burris said. ''I honestly didn't think it really was going to happen, but they called me up in the team meeting (that night) and said I could do it.''

So, Burris was given some clippers and started shaving through Fitzpatrick's fluffy locks.

''It was terrible, terrible. Bad,'' a smiling Burris said of his barber skills. ''He had to go back over it. He had to do his own thing. I'm not good with clippers.''

Burris said a few teammates were ticked off that he was the one to ''win'' the haircutting honors.

''Yeah, they were pretty mad, especially the guys on offense,'' he said, smiling. ''They didn't want a rookie to cut their quarterback's hair. But, a bet is a bet.''

So, within a few minutes, all that hair that had Jets camp buzzing was in clumps on the floor.

''It is gone, but I love his beard,'' Burris said. ''He's got a nice beard. Yeah, I like the beard. He has a cool beard.''

Burris has seen a lot of action on the field in camp and made a mostly solid impression - his haircutting skills aside, of course.

The 6-foot, 212-pound cornerback was a three-year starter at N.C. State who impressed Jets coach Todd Bowles with his press coverage, making things tough for wide receivers at the line of scrimmage and beyond. His athleticism could help him add depth at both cornerback and safety.

''The more reps I can get, the better I'll be,'' he said. ''With this system and the way we practice, I'm getting a lot of reps. So, with every rep, you get better, so I'm trying to come out here every practice and get better and never take a step back.''

The fact the interception came against the starting offense gave Burris a boost.

''It feels like you can make plays at this level,'' he said. ''That's all I want to do. I've got that confidence that I can play at this level and that was just reassurance. It was just great to be able to make that play on the 1's.''

And, Burris won't be switching from defensive back to barber any time soon.

''No,'' he said, smiling and shaking his head, ''definitely not.''

---

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL