Very few NFL teams are ‘set’ at the wide receiver position. While many teams may feel comfortable with their No. 1 or second receiver option, the list of franchises who could benefit from adding Odell Beckham Jr. is much larger than the number of rosters that couldn’t fit the three-time Pro Bowler near the top of their depth charts.
Now a full year removed from his ACL tear in Super Bowl LVI, Beckham Jr. has been a free agent since the end of the 2021-22 season. Yet the 30-year-old wideout may not have been able to pass a physical for most of that time.
Recently, we’ve seen Beckham running and making cuts in a short workout clip, and shortly after he held a workout for NFL teams, in which 12 different organizations showed up. There’s certainly interest in seeing how the 2014 Rookie of the Year is doing on his road to recovery, yet OBJ remains unsigned.
One report suggested Beckham was seeking as much as $20 million per year on his next contract. Per Beckham, this simply isn’t true.
Seemingly upset with how inaccurate reports have been circulating about his desired salary, Beckham took to Twitter to straighten out the facts.
Obviously, Beckham indicates the $20 million figure is not what he’s seeking. At the same time, OBJ seems to be indicating that he’s been offered $4 million for the 2023 season. Which, if true, is certainly a lowball offer.
We get it. Teams want to make sure he’s durable and able to return to top form before committing a large amount of money to the talented receiver, but it’s also not hard to understand why Beckham feels the reported offer is a slap in the face.
While we haven’t been able to see him produce since he re-tore his ACL, Beckham was still productive with the Rams across 12 games in 2021, averaging 49 yards per game, which would equate to 840 yards over a full season.
Yet, the question is not only can OBJ repeat this effort, but can he surpass his 2021 totals, coming off another ACL tear? Teams seem to prefer taking the approach of asking Beckham to prove it instead of paying him for what he’s done in the past.
Beckham remains at the top of the free agent wide receiver talent pool, and there are plenty of teams with a need. In the end, it may come down to whoever is willing to offer the largest salary commitment to the former Giants, Browns, and Rams receiver.