New York Giants: The Best of Odell Beckham Jr. Still to Come
By Ryan Disdier
New York Giants star Odell Beckham Jr. is already one of the NFL’s top receivers. However, there’s a good chance the football world has yet to see the very best from #13.
At this point, pretty much anything you could say about Odell Beckham Jr. would be a redundancy. Here’s what we know so far: He’s got an unreal catch radius, breakaway speed, competitive fire and some great dance moves.
While he may garner mixed reactions from some fans — mostly due to his actions in the Giants’ game against the Panthers last year — there’s no denying he’s one of the absolute best in the league at what he does.
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Hell, he’s even going to be ranked no less than No. 10 in the NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2016. That’s not too shabby, if I do say so myself.
Over the course of his first two years in the league, Beckham has enjoyed an insane amount of production. He’s totaled 187 receptions, for 2,755 yards and 25 touchdowns in 27 games. OBJ averages 102 yards every time he steps on a football field.
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The Giants have never, ever, had a superstar receiver quite like Beckham. Despite all of his current accolades and accomplishments, Beckham is still capable of more. There’s a real shot the football world still has yet to see the very best of Odell Beckham Jr.
What can he improve on?
To be honest, there isn’t much Beckham can improve on.
Well, one thing Beckham definitely doesn’t need to improve on is his innate ability to make spectacular, ridiculous one-handed catches. He’s done it so frequently and with so much ease that it’s almost expected.
However, Beckham does sometimes drop passes. For as sensational as his one-handed catches have been, some of his drops have been downright dreadful.
Improving his focus and making sure his vice-grip hands firmly grasp — “Firmly grasp it!” — the ball will increase his overall production.
Obviously, the most obvious thing Beckham needs to get better at is controlling his emotions. Playing against Josh Norman twice a year will likely warrant some added fire to Beckham’s game. That’s a good thing — to a point.
When his actions begin to hurt the team via penalties, something has to be done. I do believe his outburst last year was a one-time thing, and that he learned from his mistakes.
Why will he get better?
For all intents and purposes, Beckham has been forced to operate as a one-man show in New York’s offense. Victor Cruz shared a field with OBJ for less than two games. He hasn’t played since.
Rueben Randle never truly emerged as a reliable No. 2, as he was at times overshadowed by special-teams ace Dwayne Harris in 2015.
Now, the Giants have added fire power. Rookie Sterling Shepard appears to be the real deal, and he has a chance to contribute right away. He’s a guy who, like Beckham, can make plays both inside and outside.
Additionally, New York now boasts a rather deep group of tight ends. Larry Donnell is the big-bodied TE who has established himself as a dangerous, albeit sometimes goofy, red-zone threat. Will Tye emerged last season, leading all rookie tight ends in receiving yards. He has 4.5 speed, and the ability to hurt defenses as a receiver.
Matt LaCosse is a bit of an unknown, but he has value as both a receiver and as a blocker. Rookie Jerrell Adams, whom the Giants nabbed in the sixth round, also has tremendous upside.
And of course, Cruz figures to be healthy for the first time since 2014, which is huge.
What does all of that mean? Less double-coverage for Beckham, and more opportunities to burn defenses. Think about it like this: Last year, defenses knew the only reliable receiving option the Giants had was Beckham, and he was still able to topple 1,400 yards to go along with his 13 touchdowns.
He no longer has to do all of the heavy lifting solo, which is going to help him tremendously in 2016.
What to expect in 2016?
1,000 yards, at least nine touchdowns. I mean, that’s just the norm with Beckham, right? He’s been a paragon of consistency since he entered the league, and there’s no logical argument to why he won’t hit those marks again, barring significant injury.
Basically, things are in place for Beckham to do absolutely amazing things in 2016. He has the star quarterback, competent running game and help at the receiver position to truly soar.
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NFL.com’s Chris Wesseling went as far as predicting OBJ will break Calvin Johnson‘s single-season receiving yards record.
"“Before he ever learned a veteran’s tricks of the trade, Beckham proved he could go on historically productive tears through defensive backfields. It shouldn’t surprise anyone if the game’s most talented wideout keeps mowing down NFL records”"
I’m not sure I’m quite ready to make that prediction, but tell me why Beckham can’t do that. He has the talent, and he’s entering his third year, so his overall game is more refined.