The New England Patriots officially announced the re-signing of defensive end/linebacker Derrick Burgess, and the release of linebacker Bruce Davis and wide receiver Isaiah Stanback.

Burgess initially agreed to terms with the Patriots on May 14.

Burgess, 31, appeared in 16 games for the Patriots in 2009, totaling 35 tackles, including 5 quarterback sacks.

A third-round pick (63rd overall) out of Mississippi by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2001, Burgess has 262 tackles and 52 quarterback sacks during his nine-year career. Burgess missed all but one game in 2002 with a broken foot, and the entire 2003 season after rupturing his Achilles' tendon.

Burgess spent four seasons with the Oakland Raiders, and was traded from Oakland to New England last August, with the Patriots dealing third- and fifth-round picks in the 2010 NFL Draft for him. Oakland traded the third-round pick to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for linebacker Kamerion Wimbley (the Browns using that pick on Colt McCoy) and dealt the fifth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars for Quentin Groves (the Jaguars traded the pick to the New Orleans Saints for a 2011 fourth-round pick, and the Saints used it on center Matt Tennant).

Davis was a 2008 third-round pick (88th overall) out of UCLA by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 6-3, 252-pound linebacker appeared in five games as a rookie, but was not add his name to the stat sheet. Waived by the Steelers at the end of the 2009 training camp, Davis was signed to the Patriots' practice squad in October, where he'd remain for the rest of the '09 season. Davis signed a "Reserve/Futures" contract with New England in January.

A former college quarterback at the University of Washington, Stanback was a fourth-round pick (103rd overall) by the Dallas Cowboys in 2007. The 6-2, 208-pound Stanback caught four passes for 39 yards and a touchdown, and averaged 22 yards per kick return, during his first pre-season in Big D. Stanback was active for two games as a rookie, returning three kicks for 78 yards, with a long of 35 yards.

Stanback caught two passes for 14 yards during the 2008 pre-season, making the 53-man roster due largely to his 29.8-yard kick return average and his ability to cover punts and kicks. In eight games that season, Stanback caught a pair of passes for 24 yards, averaged 21.8 yards on 10 kick returns before being placed on injured reserve late in the season.

Waived by the Cowboys last September, Stanback began the 2009 season on the Patriots' practice squad, even getting some practice reps at quarterback, before he was activated in Week 10. In six games with the Patriots, Stanback caught 3 passes for 22 yards and returned one kick for 22 yards.