Colin Cowherd : “Odell Beckham’s not gonna win you games”

When Odell Beckham Jr. came in No. 10 on the NFL Top 100 players list voted on by players he tweeted “10? Hmm. #BuckleUp.” He then went out for a middle of the night workout, and posted about it via Instagram.

"Three in the morning. They said top 10. I'm 10. I say that's not good enough. I got to do more. They don't want it like I want it. I got to have it."

Fox Sports Radio talk show host Colin Cowherd took Beckham’s remarks as whining and lit into the New York Giants star. He also used the occasion to go off on wide receivers in general as “needy,” not as important as quarterbacks or offensive linemen and said that they don’t win games.

I disagree with Cowherd that Beckham was whining. You can take it that way if you are pre-disposed to wanting to rip the guy. I just took the two messages as Beckham saying he wants to get better.

Truth is, I dislike Cowhered more than just about any sports radio talk show personality not named Dan LeBatard. I did, however, want to highlight a couple of the things Cowherd said because they are worthy of discussion.

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“Wide receivers are needy.”

Here is the full quote from Cowherd:

"These wide receivers are needy, they're bad in meetings, they're bad on the sidelines, they're bad in huddles. They whine and complain, they force quarterbacks to have to stare at 'em."

That’s a huge generalization. Dez Bryant is needy. Terrell Owens, Chad Ochocinco and Jeremy Shockey were needy. Some guys are, but not all.

Beckham? He’s had his “diva” moments on the field. We know that. I think he’s more Deion “Prime Time” Sanders than he is T.O. or Bryant. He likes to entertain, but what he really wants is to win.

"Quarterbacks make wide receivers, not vice versa."

"Everybody's into these wide receivers. The Giants were 6-10, 6-10 with Odell Beckham. You what they were before him? 7-9. I'm not saying he's winning or losing games, but where's the value?

"I can give you 20 examples of winning teams. They don't have star receivers."

As much as I hate this, Cowherd has a point here. I have always believed that you build teams from inside out. Build the offensive and defensive lines, get the quarterback and then worry about the playmaking weapons. The wide receivers don’t do you much good without a quality quarterback and a good offensive line that gives the quarterback a chance to get the ball down field.

I’m not going to run down a list, but even in a passing league the great majority of the best teams in recent years have not been built with star receivers. They have been built with star quarterbacks, good offensive lines and good defenses.

That, of course, is not meant to say that having great wide receivers is a bad thing. You simply can’t maximize the ability of great wide receivers without a quality quarterback and a solid offensive line.

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"I'd trade Odell Beckham in 15 minutes.”

Trade Beckham? For what? Here is Cowherd’s full quote:

"Odell Beckham's not gonna win you games. If you could trade Odell Beckham today and get a left tackle, All Pro, you'd do it. You'd do it in a heartbeat.

"I'd trade Odell Beckham in 15 minutes if you could give me a starting right guard and an All-Pro left tackle. Done."

Interesting. Considering that up above I reiterated my belief that the line needs to come before the playmakers, I will admit that the right combination of tackle/guard pairings would tempt me in a trade. How about you? Here are three tackle/guard pairings. Would you trade Beckham for any of them?

• Dallas — T Tyron Smith, G Zack Martin
• Washington — T Trent Williams, G Brandon Scherff
• Cleveland — T Joe Thomas, G Joel Bitonio

It would never happen, but I have to be honest. As great as he is, I would trade Beckham for Smith and Martin in that proverbial heartbeat. Smith is a 25-year-old three-time Pro Bowler and one-time All-Pro and Martin, also 25, has two Pro Bowl appearances in two season and was All-Pro as a rookie. With Weston Richburg, Justin Pugh and Ereck Flowers that would make one incredible offensive line. Of course, then you would have to face Beckham twice a year, and I know I might regret that.

How about you, Giants fans?