There was only one thing from Monday night's game that Giants fans wanted to see less than their offense struggling to move the ball and score in its fully armed preseason debut. But that's exactly what was on the screen in the second quarter of a nationally televised game against the Browns.
There was Odell Beckham Jr. on his knees in the tunnel outside the locker room, in obvious pain after limping off the field.
Gulp.
Nothing else in the game really mattered _ or will go further in impacting the regular season _ than the status of Beckham moving forward. Initial reports from the Giants indicated an ankle sprain (he also was evaluated for a concussion and cleared), but there likely will be batteries of tests in the coming days for the team's most dynamic playmaker and one of the NFL's marquee stars.
Eventually, there was some good news for the Giants. Beckham was on their sideline in the second half, albeit in shorts and a sweatshirt, with a wrap on his left ankle. He did not appear to be limping much and spent most of the time on his feet rather than seated. Just how long he'll be in that pose of inactivity, though, remains to be seen.
The injury occurred early in the second quarter after Beckham caught an 18-yard pass from Eli Manning. Browns safety Briean Boddy-Calhoun made the tackle by diving low at Beckham's left knee.
Beckham was slow to get up. He clearly was miffed by what seemed to be an unnecessarily low hit in a preseason game, and Beckham spun the ball on the ground. He also removed his helmet and started to walk off the field before pausing and taking a knee in the middle of the field.
That was enough to launch a cavalry of trainers to get him off the field. Beckham soon was back on his feet and walked to the sideline under his own power. After a brief conversation in the bench area, he put a towel over his head and began to walk to the locker room with a slight limp.
Beckham began to jog to the tunnel. When he got to the closed locker room doors, though, he slumped to the ground into a somewhat prayerful pose that many Giants fans likely joined him in. That's where ESPN's camera caught up with him and captured the troubling image. The trainers eventually reached him and brought him into the locker room for examination. He later was taken for X-rays, which were negative.
When play resumed, the Giants drove to the 20 and Mike Nugent kicked a 38-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. The Giants' starting offense was on the field with Manning for five series, played only 24 snaps and accounted for only five first downs and three points. They ran for only 29 yards in the first half, which included a 16-yard gain by starter Paul Perkins. Perkins had five other carries for minus-6 yards.
The hit on Beckham was the second questionable one on a Giants receiver. Earlier, in the first quarter, Manning lofted a deep pass down the right sideline for Brandon Marshall. He seemed to sense the convergence of ball and defender and pulled up rather than extend for the incomplete pass, but rookie safety Jabrill Peppers hit him hard and spun Marshall around awkwardly. A flag was thrown but was picked up. Marshall stayed in the game for the rest of the half but had X-rays on his shoulder at halftime.
During the changeover following the Giants' field goal after Beckham's injury, Giants safety Landon Collins made a beeline for Boddy-Calhoun to express his displeasure with the low hit. They exchanged words and had to be separated by the officials.
