NFL insider offers latest update on Odell Beckham Jr’s next landing spot
By Josh Hill
NFL insider Ian Rapoport went on the Pat McAfee Show to dish on where Odell Beckham Jr will likely play in 2022 and what the hold up on a deal is.
The absolute frenzy of the NFL offseason has seemingly died down, but that doesn’t mean top-tier talent remains available on the open market.
Odell Beckham Jr., once lauded as the best receiver in football early in his career, is still a free agent despite the name recognition and talent he possesses. After a rocky stint with the Cleveland Browns, OBJ’s narrative completely reversed course once he was freed from Baker Mayfield and linked up with Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford in Los Angeles.
The result was the Rams first Super Bowl victory since 1999 and the first the franchise has ever won in Los Angeles. But that was four months ago and it’s been 78 days since NFL free agency opened, yet Beckham remains without a deal.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport went on The Pat McAfee Show and shed some light on why that is and when it could change.
NFL Rumors: Will Odell Beckham Jr return to the Rams in 2022?
“I do think [Odell Beckham Jr] being with the Rams is still a possibility. They liked everything they saw from him last year and he liked them too,” Rapoport told The Pat McAfee Show.
This isn’t really anything new. Odell and the Rams have been linked all offseason and the lack of movement with other teams swooping in to steal him away seems to suggest it’s only a matter of time before a deal gets done that sees him return to Los Angeles.
So the question everyone has is what’s the hold up?
As Rapoport puts it, this isn’t about money or other contracts getting in the way — namely a new deal for Aaron Donald. Rather, the ACL injury that OBJ suffered in the Super Bowl is what has both slowed the timeline down and also seemingly eliminated the sense of urgency to get something done.
Something else that Rapoport mentions, which illuminates why teams like the Packers, Bears, or Chiefs have likely held off on signing Beckham in favor of other free agent options, is the timing of the ACL injury. That it happened in the Super Bowl — the absolute deepest into the NFL schedule it could happen — means that he won’t be playing a full season in 2022.
“He’s such an interesting case because he’s probably not going to play the first several games, might be half of the season. The timing of the injury was so bad for someone who was playing as well as he probably has since his first or second year with the Giants.”
“It’s not like Odell is going to be getting $15 million in Year 1 because he’s probably not going to play the first little bit [of the season].”
This doesn’t take teams around the league out of the running for OBJ once he gets healthy enough for a deal to become a reality. Aaron Rodgers would likely love to have him in Green Bay and the Packers were reportedly close to acquiring him from the Browns last season before getting beat out by the Rams.