Smith: Odell made ‘mystery meat’ Eli good

Eli Manning has been called a lot of things over the years, but Steve Smith’s latest description of the two-time Super Bowl champ is perhaps the most unique.

While discussing the Giants quarterback Thursday with Deion Sanders on NFL Network, the retired receiver likened Manning to a random piece of beef that former teammate Odell Beckham Jr. could whip into something great.

“I love Eli, too, and respect him, but I watch this show on this other channel called ‘Chopped,’ and you know how they have a mystery basket, and I’ve seen some chefs do a lot of great things with some mystery meat that regular folk just can’t perform,” Smith said.

“All I’m saying is Odell Beckham is an excellent chef,” he continued. “Sometimes you’ve got that mystery meat called Eli that you just have to make into something.”

Beckham, who spent the first five years of his career with the Giants, was traded to the Browns in March. The lightning-rod receiver previously commented that he felt he was helping to keep the 94-year-old Giants franchise alive.

“They were getting prime-time games, still, as a 5-and-11 team. Why? Because people want to see the show. You want to see me play. That’s just real rap,” Beckham told GQ in a recent interview. “I’m not sitting here like, ‘It’s because of me.’ But let’s just be real. That’s why we’re still getting primetime games.”

Manning, who is entering his 16th season with the Giants, is focused on what’s ahead amid an injury bug that already has claimed two receivers.

“You just kind of shake your head and laugh,” Manning said of Beckham’s words. “I won a few games before he was here.”