THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Plaxico Burress said in a television interview he didn't realize he'd accidentally shot himself until he saw the blood dripping onto his sneaker.

In an excerpt of an ESPN interview broadcast Monday night, the former New York Giants receiver said the shooting happened about five minutes after he entered the Latin Quarter night club in Manhattan.

"I take two or three steps and like my pants are wet," Burress said in the interview. "I had some Chuck Taylor's (Converse sneakers) and I looked down and the top of my shoe is red."

Burress said he immediately turned to then teammate Antonio Pierce and asked the middle linebacker to take him to the hospital.

"And he was like 'Why?" Burress said. "I said I just think I shot myself, and he was like 'Noooo!"

The full interview will be broadcast Tuesday night.

Burress pleaded guilty last week to a weapons charge stemming from the November incident and accepted a two-year prison term. He is to be sentenced Sept. 22.

He said his .40-calibre Glock fired after he missed a step walking up stairs. The gun began to slide down his pant leg, and Burress said he accidentally pulled the trigger through his pants when he tried to stop the gun from hitting the ground.

"My finger hit, like, right on the trigger," he said. "What are the odds on that happening?"

Burress, who alleged security staff knew he was carrying a gun upon entering the club, said he was wearing black jeans, not sweat pants as previously reported.

When asked why he didn't have a holster, Burress said simply:

"Bad judgment."