Three weeks ago today, Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was still Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. By the end of the day, he had been traded.
“I was heading to dinner and I just remember seeing [Giants G.M. Dave] Gettleman calling,” Beckham told reporters on Monday. “I knew something was going down. I picked up the phone and took the call. It was quiet for a minute at dinner. It just was a lot. I do not even know how else to describe it. It was just a lot, a lot of emotions and a lot of thoughts that run through your mind. Your whole life is changing. It is still the same in theory, but it is changing. I just took it to process. I called my mom, I called [Jarvis Landry] and here we are today.”
Beckham admitted to being stunned by the news.
“It is just a lot to process,” Beckham said. “You start off in New York in your career, and the next thing that you know, I am here today. I am very thankful for the opportunity to be here. Kind of the past is in the past. It was definitely a shock, but I think that I have come to grips with everything and processed everything. It was a lot, but my guy is here and I am excited about that.”
He downplayed the differences between playing and living in New York and Cleveland by pointing out that, come August, it doesn’t matter.
“[A]t the end of the day, when you are in the season, you just focus on playing ball anyway,” Beckham said. “I am sure that it will be a little different, but you can make home anywhere.”
Beckham accepts the fact that he ultimately can’t control his destination.
“This is a different league,” Beckham said. “You do not get to pick where you go. I feel like there is no way God would have led me here to not be here for a reason. It makes sense.”
Beckham’s resignation doesn’t make sense, however, given that receiver Antonio Brown was able to tweet his way out of Pittsburgh — and to engineer his destination. Beckham surely realizes that, and it’s something that could become an issue down the road.
For now, though, the vibes are positive for a team that hasn’t been this relevant in years. Whether that remains to be the case depends on what happens when it’s time to play games that count later this year.