I’ll admit I was surprised to hear late this morning that former Giant Plaxico Burress had accepted a deal that will land him in jail for two years.

I expected he’d take his chances, hoping a jury might see a reason to give him a break.

I’m conflicted over his sentence. On one hand, I feel like shooting himself, dealing with the injury, the break with the Giants after their Super Bowl success and facing the public humiliation over his stupidity has been punishment enough.

He may even have been singled out as an example by both Mayor Bloomberg and the police because of his celebrity. But where does this end?

I followed the on-field heroics and off-field legal problems of West Virginia University football standouts Chris Henry and Adam “Pacman” Jones from their days in Morgantown to their time in the National Football League. Both had multiple brushes with the law and neither one —even after repeated second chances — got that they had to change their act.

Jones, for one, couldn’t stay away from clubs and the trouble that often lurks in that atmosphere even when his future in football depended on it.

So there was Burress, out clubbing, and packing a loaded gun — possibly because he saw himself as a target. But if you go places where you feel threatened, the simple solution is to stay away and party at home. Failing that, let a professional bodyguard tag along to fend off overzealous fans or macho idiots out to pick a fight with a star.

It’s a shame that talent self-destructs so often. Michael Vick did and so did his brother, who many believed was even more talented.

Now Burress has cut a deal that he has to find disappointing. He’ll lose two critical years from his pro career, leaving him to hope for a comeback in his mid-30s.

But even before a cell door closes behind him, another door has opened.

As it suspended the wide receiver, the NFL announced that he would be reinstated after his prison term.

Perhaps they don’t get it, either.