There’s no shortage of interest in receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. There’s a definite shortage of interest when it comes to Beckham’s financial expectations.
The Jets were one of the 12 teams that attended his workout two weeks ago. Last week, future Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, in downplaying characterizations of a “wish list” as a ransom note, made it clear on Pat McAfee’s show that Rodgers is interested in playing with OBJ.
So will the Jets make a move? Connor Hughes of SNY recently tweeted that the Jets’ interest in Beckham is “very real.” (Not to get philosophical here, but if it’s “real” it’s necessarily “very real” and also “extremely real” and even “super duper extremely seriously real.”)
And it is real. That’s a given at this point.
The challenge continues to be making OBJ’s expectation match New York’s super duper extremely seriously real budget. He has bristled at playing for only $4 million. He wants $20 million per year. (He has denied it, but he also has supplied it.)
As previously explained, why wouldn’t he want $20 million per year? The 15 highest-paid receivers are at or above $20 million per year. Surely, OBJ regards his skills as comparable to the players at or near the fringes of the top 10.
Then there’s the question of what his role would be with the Jets. They have Garrett Wilson, who was the NFL’s offensive rookie of the year. They have Allen Lazard, to whom they gave a significant free-agent contract. They’ve just added Mecole Hardman. Where would OBJ fit?
His best approach continues to be finding a spot where he can do a one-year deal, enhance his base salary with significant incentives, have a strong season, and hit the market again next year.