Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. seemed certain that his production was being held back by the New York Giants and veteran quarterback Eli Manning, and that his offseason trade — however surprising it may have been to some — would yield the best season of his professional career.
To date, things have not gone according to plan for Beckham, who is putting up below-average numbers across the board and, in some cases, career-lows.
Following Cleveland’s latest loss on Sunday, a 24-19 defeat at the hands of the Denver Broncos, Mount Beckham appeared ready to erupt.
“I can’t get the ball to save my life,” Beckham was heard saying on the sideline despite drawing the second-most number of targets on the team.
Beckham’s frustration came after quarterback Baker Mayfield failed to look his way on a critical fourth-and-4 that could have kept Cleveland’s hopes alive. Instead, Mayfield was late with his throw to Jarvis Landry and the team failed to convert as a wide-open OBJ ripped off his gloves and threw them as far as he could.
Perhaps tossing a little gasoline on the fire, former Giants offensive lineman and Beckham’s old teammate, Geoff Schwartz, poked a little fun at OBJ and did so by referencing Eli Manning.
Frustrated Cleveland fans were quick to rip Schwartz for the tweet, but the reality is that Manning would have thrown that ball to Beckham — even if it had to be forced into double-coverage.
All Schwartz intended to point out, albeit somewhat tongue-in-cheek, is that the grass isn’t necessarily always greener on the other side. And as it has been throughout history, no wide receiver has ever left Manning and gone on to perform at a higher clip. And whether you hate Eli or not, that’s a stone-cold fact.
