At this point, there’s little reason to believe that free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. will sign with the Dallas Cowboys.
The three-time Pro Bowler has completed visits with the Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants. These three clubs, all currently in playoff positions, have been considered the main front-runners to land OBJ for several weeks now.
But it’s probably safe to assume that Beckham Jr. will not be suiting up for America’s Team this year. For starters, ESPN’s Ed Werder reported on Tuesday that Dallas was left concerned over Beckham’s recovery from surgery on his torn ACL following a physical.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk also suggested that it was the Cowboys who “leaked” the information on Beckham’s injury status. One league source asked Florio, “How could he even consider signing there now?”
Here’s what else Florio wrote on the matter:
“So who did this come from? Beckham’s camp? No way. It only came from the Cowboys. And it’s obvious that the Cowboys wanted it out there.
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At one point, it appeared that the Cowboys possibly were going through the motions with Beckham in order to get the Giants to pay more. Now, it looks as if the Cowboys are trying to get Beckham to take less — or, more specifically, to not insist on a contract that extends beyond 2022. They also may be trying, as one league source has opined, to placate players and fans who had been clamoring for the Cowboys to sign Beckham”
Beckham suffered a torn ACL in the Los Angeles Rams’ Super Bowl 56 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Feb. 13. He underwent surgery soon after, and it was common knowledge that he wouldn’t be back until some point in the second half of the 2022 regular season at earliest.
The 2014 Offensive Rookie of the Year played six games for the Cleveland Browns last season before the organization released the disgruntled receiver. Beckham then signed with Sean McVay’s Rams, and he proved to be a perfect complement to superstar Cooper Kupp.
After notching zero touchdowns for the Browns in those six games, Beckham racked up five for the Rams in eight regular season contests. He was even better in the four postseason games, recording 21 catches for 288 yards and two touchdowns.
It’s been three years since he last played a full season, as Beckham also suffered a season-ending ACL tear in the middle of the 2020 campaign. But as we saw with the Rams last season, Beckham can be a difference-maker for a championship-needy team. Now we wait and see who’s willing to take the chance on the veteran wideout.
