Nate Burleson is a Seattle native and played for the Seahawks for four seasons. And he's returning there once again, but not for playing reasons. Instead, he needs surgery. Burleson told the Detroit Free Press on Wednesday that he's returning home to have a "minor" operation on his right elbow. The elbow injury is something the Lions' wide receiver has been living with since November, and he had hoped it would heal on its own. But it has continued to swell up over time, and Free Press writer Dave Birkett said today that the elbow "looked like a softball." Burleson said he has to have the fluid drained and a bursa sac removed. He is expected to fine by the time training camp opens, a time that is currently unknown due to the lockout.

Fantasy Analysis:

According to the basic stats, Burleson actually had a better season than I remember in 2010. He caught 55 passes for 625 yards and six touchdowns. This despite missing two games due to injury and playing in four other games in which he registered just one catch and fewer than 20 yards. With Matthew Stafford supposedly back to 100 percent health, you could consider Burleson a sleeper, especially with Calvin Johnson distracting defenses across from him. But the Lions spent a 2011 second-round pick on the exciting Titus Young . The rookie will probably cut into Burleson's production, keeping him as just a reserve in fantasy.