Giants co-owner John Mara continued to back off his comments from training camp about giving wide receiver Odell Beckham a lucrative, long-term contract.
Following the press conference of new GM Dave Gettleman, Mara expressed he still wants Beckham to be a part of the Giants' future, but left the door open to going a different route.
"I think I've got to sit with Dave and the new head coach and figure out exactly what is gonna happen here," he said. "But let's face it: players with his ability don't come along very often, so yes I want him to be a part of this team's future. As far as to when we actually do the contract, I think that's up for discussion."
Mara acknowledged that Beckham, as well as Eli Manning, were both discussed in interviews with each GM candidate and "got pretty much the same answers from everybody on both those guys."
Gettleman was asked specifically about Beckham more than any other player in his opening press conference Friday morning but it was a question about what he learned from dealing with players and agents as a GM for the Carolina Panthers that was perhaps the most revealing.
"(The players) don't want to hear the value you put on them because it hurts their feelings. They're sad. This is a big boy league. You got to put your big boy pants on now," he said. "Nobody feels sorry for you. Nobody cares about your injuries. Nobody cares what you make, what you don't make. So, I've learned that you have to be consistent. You got to be fair and if the player is upset, so be it. So be it."
Beckham expressed he wants to be the highest-paid player in the NFL this past summer before suffering a season-ending ankle injury in Week 5.
Gettleman got to see Beckham up close two years ago as Panthers GM when Beckham and Carolina corner Josh Norman exchanged cheap shots and had to be separated several times throughout the course of the game.
"I have no idea what's going on in Odell's head that game, I have no idea why that happened, so I would want to sit down with Odell and say, why?" Gettleman said. "Bottom line is shame on me if I have any preconceived notions as guys as people. ... Everyone is going to get a fair shake."
Gettleman said he learned from Ernie Accorsi not to give up on talent. However, he refused to franchise tag Norman at the end of the season and let him sign with Washington despite being an integral part of a defense that led the Panthers to a Super Bowl appearance.
Gettleman plans to speak to Beckham and get to know him and, like Mara, admitted he is a talented player who makes sense to be part of the solution to fix the Giants.
He will just have to determine whether or not Beckham fits the mold of the type of player and culture he wants to build with the Giants.
"There's two kinds of players in this league, folks. There are guys who play professional football and professional football players," he said. "The professional football players are the guys we want. I don't want guys who want to win, I want guys who hate to lose. That's the professional football player. That's what you want."
