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Odell Beckham Jr. is skipping voluntary OTAs with the New York Giants over money, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
No one in Odell Beckham Jr. camp has admitted it, but his absence from OTAs is directly related to his desire for a new deal, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 7, 2017
Beckham Tuesday re-tweeted a radio interview Schefter did in which he said this:
“If I were Odell Beckham Jr., or I were advising Odell Beckham Jr., I would not show up at an OTA, I would not show up at a mandatory mini-camp, I would not show up at a training camp, I would not show up at anything until that contract, which finally can be adjusted for the first time, were made to reflect his value to this team, this organization, the type of player he is in this league.”
That’s pretty strong stuff from Schefter, a guy who doesn’t represent players and is paid to report news, not make it.
Beckham is set to make $1.839 million in base salary in 2017, the fourth year of his rookie contract. The Giants have already picked up his fifth-year option, which is scheduled to pay him $8.459 million in 2018. The Daily News pointed out that rookie contracts can be re-negotiated once a player completes three seasons, which Beckham has.
Beckham’s base salary will make him the 44th-highest paid wide receiver in the NFL in 2016. Teammates Brandon Marshall ($3 million) and Dwayne Harris ($2.475 million) are among the receivers who will make more money. Harris caught one pass last season.
Beckham, clearly, is not the league’s 44th-best wide receiver. He certainly, though, isn’t hurting for money after agreeing to a record-setting shoe deal with Nike.
OTAs are, as we have said again and again, voluntary. Thus, you can’t apply the term “holdout” to Beckham’s decision not to attend. Pro Football Talk used the term “passively-aggressive” in describing Beckham’s approach this offseason, and that is probably an apt description. Should he skip next week’s mandatory mini-camp that would be a purely aggressive act. At that point, “holdout” would likely be an accurate term.
The time when the Giants and Beckham would enter into a high-stakes contract negotiation has been on the horizon ever since he burst into stardom as a rookie. Is this really the beginning of that dance?
If the Giants want to keep Beckham long term they will eventually have to fork over a massive amount of money in order to do it. Should they do it now, or should they hold their ground and make him play under the terms of his rookie contract?