Usually, when your head coach makes a direct suggestion, it’s wise to acknowledge it respectfully, at least.
But Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. said he plans to make no changes to his demeanor after his latest outburst, even though Giants coach Ben McAdoo said he should work to keep his emotions in check.
“Nah, I’m not really ... I’m in a great place right now,” Beckham said, via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. “Mentally, physically, spiritually, there is not really much that bothers me at all, to be honest. So I’m going to go out and play football the only way I’ve ever known how to play, try my best to be the best teammate you possibly can.
“At the end of the day, you play for the guys that wear the jersey. They’re the ones who take the field with you, who you share the blood, sweat and tears with. I’m just going to go out and be who I am.”
He was then asked if he was concerned he could be a distraction, as his boss said, Beckham blew that off.
“He said, she said,” Beckham replied. “I’m not really concerned about anything but the Minnesota Vikings.”
McAdoo seemed concerned about his team and its star player, after Beckham’s sideline freakout during last week’s loss to Washington, which included losing by TKO in a fight with the kicking net. And while veteran cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie urged Beckham to “never lose that fire,” he also suggested there was a time and place for it.
“But on the sideline there are a bunch of guys and they’re already down and, if a guy looks at you the way we look at you as a leader, keep it in control until we get to the locker room,” Rodgers-Cromartie said. “Throw your helmet all across the locker room so nobody can see. That’s fine. In an atmosphere like [the sideline during a game], keep your cool.”
Beckham seems unconcerned with the advice, so here’s some more for him: Don’t pick fights with equipment that might fight back.