Browns cut ties with Beckham
CLEVELAND — Odell Beckham’s final target with the Browns was a pass thrown to him late, high and out of his reach.
He tried catching it with one hand.
Another incompletion, and like OBJ’s time with Cleveland, a failure.
Out of patience with Beckham’s antics and attitude, the Browns on Friday said they’re releasing the polarizing star wide receiver, whose arrival 2 1/2 years ago triggered a celebration and spawned wild expectations never met.
Beckham’s unceremonious exit — still not official — came on his 29th birthday and days after his father shared an 11-minute video on social media highlighting plays on which Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t throw him the ball.
Beckham was excused from two days of practice while his agents tried to work out an amicable parting with general manager Andrew Berry as the Browns (4-4) were preparing to play a critical game on Sunday in Cincinnati.
“This really is not about the video,” Berry said a few hours after the Browns announced the breakup. “It’s really about a series of discussions, certainly over the last week but even spanning back longer than that.”
Beckham wanted out of Cleveland almost from the time he was acquired in a 2019 blockbuster trade from the New York Giants. He asked to be traded several times, and now has his wish. Sort of.
It was supposed to be so different. The Browns thought Beckham could be the final piece, the game-changing playmaker for Mayfield, capable of transforming the offense and leading Cleveland to Super Bowls. Instead, Beckham was injured, frustrated and mostly used as a decoy.
“I don’t think anyone envisioned when the organization traded for Odell three years ago that this would really be the resolution,” said Berry, who inherited Beckham
after former GM John Dorsey pulled off the trade.
“It’s unfortunate, but at the same time there are some situations in the NFL where things just don’t quite work out.”
The Browns didn’t appreciate the video or that Beckham never reached out to Mayfield or coach Kevin Stefanski, who often praised his work ethic in an arduous recovery from knee surgery.
Berry did speak with Beckham, but didn’t disclose the nature of their conversations.
Once the sides finalize financial terms — Beckham is owed $8 million this season — Beckham will be waived and can be claimed by any team with enough salary-cap space. If he clears the waiver wire, which probably won’t happen until early next week, he’ll be a free agent and can sign anywhere.