To tell the ‘truth,’ it was about time OBJ got lectured
YOU DON’T have to guess how Giants general manager Jerry Reese feels about Odell Beckham Jr.’s 2016 season. This about sums it up: “We all have to grow up at different times in our lives,” Reese said at the Giants training facility Monday. “And I think it is time for him to do that.”
Telling his star wide receiver to “grow up” was drop-the-mic stuff considering the room Beckham has been allowed to display his personality and passion even to the detriment of his team. But now that the season over, now that the Giants are done following a 38-13 NFC wild-card loss at Green Bay on Sunday, it was time for Reese to lecture his All-Pro wide receiver during his exit interview on Monday. Better late than never.
Reese said he told Beckham “the truth” and made it clear he needed to clean up his act on and off the field.
“He’s a smart guy,” Reese said during his postseason wrap-up with reporters. “But sometimes he doesn’t do smart things.”
The Giants spent much of this season, putting up with Beckham’s antics, including carrying on with a kicking net; acting obnoxiously on the f ield with opponents and off i ci al s ; and creating a controversy on social media by spending his off day a week ago Monday on a boat in Miami. Add punching a hole in the wall at Lambeau Field, following Sunday’s loss and the embarrassment keeps mounting.
The Giants tolerated his nonsense as long as he was scoring touchdowns and being the most dominant receiver in the NFL. But then came Sunday night in Green Bay, where Beckham seemed blinded by his own spotlight. He dropped a critical thirddown conversion early in the game and later dropped a potential touchdown pass. The drops kept the Giants from building early momentum.
“If you have a chance to make plays early in the game, you can’t let that go,” Reese said. “You have to put teams away if you have a chance. We had them on the ropes early and we just didn’t finish the job.”
After all his brushfires during the regular season, including the frenzy caused by the shirtless boat trip in Miami last week, the last thing Beckham could afford was to come up small in the playoffs. Greatness is defined in the postseason. No-shows aren’t forgiven.
Eli Manning never mentioned Beckham by name Monday but made it clear the early drops hurt the Giants.
“You have to make those plays in the playoffs,” the quarterback said.
Meanwhile head coach Ben McAdoo clearly wasn’t happy with reports Beckham punched a hole in a wall at Lambeau. “That’s not the way we want to be acting after ballgames,” McAdoo said.
If B eckham had c a ught 11 passes for 151 yards like Plaxico Burress did in the NFC Championship at Green Bay f ive years ago, he wouldn’t be taking heat today. But in a game intended to validate his greatness, Beckham wasn’t great at all.
Common s e nse s uggest s a quick trip to Miami on a day off should be a grown man’s prerogative. But now it’s the subject of controversy and debate. Beckham has to live with that.
The Giants need to do whatever they can to get Beckham under control. You don’t want to diminish the passion he plays with, but you can’t have him punching walls after games or getting penalties during them. Add the dropped passes and that’s a player hurting his team in more ways than one.
Beckham won’t be easy to t a me. He’s the Gi a nt s ’ f irst social-media star; a Kim Kardashian in cleats. It was easier to keep Lawrence Taylor out of New York City than it will be to keep Beckham off the internet. Reese hopes Beckham will take the exit interview to heart.
“He heard the truth today,” Reese said, “and I think he is going to do things that he needs to do to be accountable for some of the actions he’s had.”
Better late than never.