This is O’s team now
Shurmur’s reaction to Beckham signals transfer of power
The Giants now are officially Odell Beckham Jr.’s team, not Eli Manning’s.
And while that already was true the second Beckham signed his five-year, $90 million extension on Aug. 27, coach Pat Shurmur’s refusal on Friday to reprimand Beckham for comments critical of the team and quarterback sealed it.
Because when Beckham said in an ESPN interview released Friday that the Giants lack “heart” and “energy” and took his clearest shot yet at Manning’s poor play, Shurmur had his first opportunity to reinforce the new regime’s supposed harder line and lower tolerance for divisiveness and distractions.
And instead, Shurmur publicly passed the buck when asked if he would discipline Beckham.
“For what?” said the coach, after speaking with Beckham about his comments Friday morning.
And so you need to understand something here. Read this however many times you need:
One major and legitimate reason Shurmur is not coming down hard on Beckham for his criticisms of the quarterback has to be that Shurmur knows OBJ is right. He will not say it, but I believe the coach is just as impatient and frustrated with Manning as Beckham is. That, to me, is why Manning was giving off such a defensive vibe on Monday.
Shurmur knows Beckham is aware that the coach is trying to get him the ball and is not being critical of the playcalling. And they both know the reason the ball isn’t getting to him. That’s why I’ve agreed with Beckham every step of the way when he’s vented frustration or hinted at his dismay with Manning. Because he’s 100 percent correct.
My issue is that Shurmur is not coming down on Beckham for questioning the team’s “heart” and for making his criticism of the quarterback so public. Because regardless of what Shurmur agrees or disagrees with, he and GM Dave Gettleman were supposed to avoid repeating the mistakes of predecessors Jerry Reese, Ben McAdoo and even Tom Coughlin.
And one of the trio’s greatest errors was often enabling players, Beckham especially, rather than disciplining them whenever their behavior was destructive rather than constructive. This was part of the reason the culture deteriorated: unclear standards and expectations, inconsistent enforcement and special treatment.
Shurmur, though, is faced with the harsh reality that his team has a 1-3 record and desperately needs to win Sunday at Carolina, and suspending or disciplining Beckham would not help their goal to do so.
I do like that Shurmur said he and Beckham “actually already addressed it” on Friday morning. He went right to the player to get Beckham’s side of the story. Players respect and remember that.
Still, I expected this coach to do more than he did at his Friday afternoon press meeting, which was to deflect and spin like a top. At first I thought maybe Shurmur actually had told Beckham that, in lieu of a punishment, he must explain himself publicly to squash the drama. Because Shurmur said three different times to ask OBJ to explain himself.
“I guess you’d have to clarify — that’s probably a better question for him what he meant by it,” Shurmur said, adding later, “I’m not sure he was unhappy. I don’t know. Again, if you have a question regarding what he said or what he meant, I would just ask you to spin back and ask him,” and, “You just need to clarify (from) him what he meant.”
But Beckham was not available in the locker room afterward, so it was tough to see how Shurmur resolved this at all.
Beckham posted on Instagram a few times Friday, saying “perfection is the goal, n I’m headin to the pylon;” “Love me…or hate me. I am who I am…” and issuing a heartfelt reflection on a trying past 365 days recovering from his broken left ankle. He concluded with: “Last year and the past is now officially behind me n I ain’t loookin back, on GOD. Let the games begin #JokerSzn #ImBack.”
The meat of Beckham’s controversial comments to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, though, was that the Giants’ poor start “has to do with the energy that we don’t have, that we don’t bring every single day. And you know me. I’m a passionate, energetic person. I always have to have that. If I don’t, it’s gonna be a problem for me. And just playing with some heart. We just need to play with some heart.”
Beckham then alluded to frustrations with Manning’s inability and reluctance to throw the ball downfield.
“How come we can’t throw the ball for more than 20 yards?” Beckham asked rhetorically. “How come we don’t attempt or try to throw the ball for more than 20 yards? Those are questions that we have to figure out. But for now I would say it’s our heart, it’s our energy. It’s what we bring when we line up before the game, all of that. It counts.”
If Beckham’s comments ruffled any teammates’ feathers, they weren’t showing it. But many of them also were coached up to answer that execution was the issue, not energy and heart, which is the same line Shurmur used.
Most meaningful in support of Beckham was special teams captain Michael Thomas saying: “I have no issue with someone trying to hold guys accountable.” And fellow wideout Sterling Shepard provided the most insightful clarification of what Beckham meant by his remarks on a lack of energy.
“I think what he’s talking about is just before the game, some guys are different,” Shepard said. “Some guys want to sit in the locker and look over plays. Some guys want to get rowdy. That’s what kind of personality he has, so that’s what he likes to see. But some guys are different. But yeah, I feel like it all comes down to just execution and everybody being assignment sound.”
So no, Beckham is not wrong to be frustrated with Manning. And he is not being selfish; he is tired of losing. If he went a career-high fifth straight game without a touchdown on Sunday but the Giants won, he’d be happy.
Still, when Shurmur was hired and Gettleman constantly said “he’s an adult,” the message was that this new regime would not tolerate distractions and nonsense and would enforce those expectations to correct the culture accordingly.
I know Beckham is the franchise’s best player and $90 million man and that he makes some good points, but frankly I am surprised — even in the Giants’ desperate situation — at Shurmur’s refusal to act.
The coach’s message is clear, though: the team needs to win, and it’s not Beckham who needs to be sent a message; it’s Manning.
VERNON REMAINS OUT
Olivier Vernon (high left ankle sprain) is a surprise scratch for a fifth straight game to start the season despite Shurmur, Vernon and defensive coordinator James Bettcher being “optimistic” early this week. Vernon joins tight end Evan Engram (right knee MCL sprain) on Sunday’s list of injured players out.
“O.V. had a really good week, he was close but not quite close enough,” Shurmur said. “So then we just backed off a little bit today to give him some rest.”
The good news is that the Giants will get back CB Eli Apple (groin), WR Cody Latimer (knee) and CB Antonio Hamilton (groin). And LB Connor Barwin (knee), Shepard (back) and DL Damon Harrison (knee) all are good to go.