Top 30 athletes under 30
By Robert Judin
11. Odell Beckham Jr, New York Giants – 22 years old
On November 5, 2015, Odell Cornelius Beckham Jr will turn 23 years old. Are you kidding? He’s only been able to legally drink for just less than two years, and he’s already the most explosive wide receiver in the NFL.
OBJ wasn’t even the top wideout selected in the 2014 NFL Draft. The Buffalo Bills traded up to No. 4 overall to select Sammy Watkins out of Clemson, which was a great pick. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected the 6-foot-5, 231-pound Mike Evans out of Texas A&M at No. 7 overall. Both, again, were good picks.
But when the Giants took Beckham at No. 12 overall, not even they expected him to be as good as he is as quickly as it’s happened.
Last season — his rookie year — Beckham led the NFL with 108.8 receiving yards per game. He has 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns. Oh, and he miss the first four games due to injury — no biggie.
In his first 16 games of his career, he notched 14 touchdowns and 1,612 receiving yards — both NFL records.
With Rueben Randle and Victor Cruz demanding attention from opposing secondaries, it seems as though Beckham is going to continue to eat at an alarming rate. And let it be noted that “spectacular catches” are not an officially kept statistic yet, but Beckham would probably be leading in that category, too.
Next: No. 10 Bryce Harper