There is no way to know whether Odell Beckham Jr.'s meltdown last year against cornerback Josh Norman could have been avoided had Victor Cruz been in the game. But Cruz likes to think the situation wouldn't have escalated the way it did, when Beckham became so enraged that he launched himself helmet first at Norman and wound up being suspended.
"I just feel like things would have shaken out a little differently had I been there," Cruz told Newsday on Thursday. "I would have been more of a voice to interject and tell him, 'You don't need to do this. This is bigger than just this game.' "
Norman was so completely inside Beckham's head during the Panthers' 38-35 win last Dec. 20 that the Giants' receiver committed three personal fouls, including the head shot that resulted in his suspension for the regular-season finale. During the offseason, NFL owners approved a measure, dubbed "the Beckham rule," in which a player can be ejected for two personal fouls. It is still up to the referee's discretion to eject a player for one personal foul, although that is a rarity and has not occurred this season.
"I would have been a voice, a bigger voice, whatever it was, to tell him that we've got bigger fish to fry," Cruz said. "It's bigger than just this moment. This game is bigger than just this."
Cruz missed nearly two full seasons with knee and calf injuries, and his presence on and off the field has helped Beckham. Their partnership was highly anticipated when Beckham was a rookie in 2014. But they had been on the field together a mere six quarters when Cruz suffered a season-ending knee injury. Cruz missed 2015 with calf problems that eventually required surgery.
In this season's first two games, Cruz caught the winning TD against Dallas and set up the winning field goal against the Saints. Beckham leads the team with 12 catches, and he needs 86 receiving yards to become the fastest to 3,000 in NFL history.
The bigger story line will be Beckham's first meeting since last season with Norman, who signed with Washington as a free agent. If Cruz finds Norman is getting to Beckham, he won't hesitate to intercede. Nor will Beckham decline the help. Their relationship is that solid.
There is much the two share, even if their paths to the NFL differed greatly. Cruz made the Giants' roster in 2010 as a walk-on free agent from UMass, while Beckham was a first-round pick in 2014.
"It's not so much veteran leadership, but just another guy who's been in New York, who's had his ups and downs, who's finally back on the field," Beckham told Newsday. "That's the best feeling about it, that he's worked his butt off to get back out here and you can just tell he's happy to be back. That gives me and the team energy. We love Vic. For him to be back making plays, it's awesome."
Beckham has gone to great lengths to avoid giving Norman bulletin-board material, emphasizing this game is not about any individual matchup. Then again, he expressed similar sentiments before last year's game, and you know what happened.
Yet Beckham seems to have learned from his experience, and having another voice he greatly respects playing alongside him reduces the likelihood of another meltdown. No, this is all about making plays, not making noise.
With Cruz and promising rookie Sterling Shepard lining up with him, Beckham knows there is something special going on here.
"It's going to be trouble," he said, meaning for defenses. "Like I said, you've got to pick your poison."
