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Givens caught 56 passes for 874 yardsBy Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com

Three-year veteran David Givens, who led the New England Patriots in receptions and receiving yards in 2004, has re-signed with the Super Bowl champions.

A restricted free agent, Givens signed the one-year qualifying offer, worth $1.43 million, tendered him by the team two months ago. There had been some talk that Givens might land a long-term contract, but that did not materialize. He will be eligible for unrestricted free agency next spring if he does not sign an extension before then.

Givens, 24, registered career highs last season with 56 receptions for 874 yards, and he scored three touchdowns. His play was particularly critical to the Patriots in the first half of the season, when fellow wide receiver Deion Branch missed seven contests.

In the postseason, Givens carried over his strong performances, posting 12 receptions for 104 yards and three touchdowns in three games. Givens scored in all three playoff wins, including a four-yard touchdown catch in Super Bowl XXXIX.

The former Notre Dame star has now caught at least one touchdown pass in each of the Patriots' last five postseason games, all wins.

Selected in the seventh round of the 2002 draft, Givens started only five times during his first two seasons in the NFL, but began to assume a more significant role at the midway point of the 2003 campaign. He opened 2004 as the starter and finished with 12 starts in 15 appearances.

Particularly adept at running the crossing patterns that are so big a part of the Patriots offense, Givens has averaged a healthy 14.9 yards per catch for his career. His average has increased every season.

For his career, Givens has 99 catches for 1,476 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has played in 40 games and started in 17 of them.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. To check out Len's chat archive, click here .