Not Bending For Beckham

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New York Giants star wide-receiver Odell Beckham Jr. said he would not step onto a football field without his contract issue being resolved. The “issue” being that Beckham wants to be the highest paid wide-out in the NFL. This is a problem for the NY Giants because they are not used to being threatened by a player and because they are generally not known as a team who will overpay for talent – no matter who it is. But this problem might find a very satisfying remedy if the rumors coming out are true. The rumor is that the NY Giants are indeed shopping Beckham around – and the price would include a first round pick for this year’s draft.

Source: Al Bello/Getty Images North America

The New York Giants were 3-13 last season and find themselves with the number two overall pick in the draft. The whole direction of the draft kinda-sorta depends on what the Giants want to do with that #2 overall pick. Now, with the possibility of getting another first round pick – the Giants can try to revamp their roster the right way and look to a bright future that won’t be that distant.

The Giants have options here if they trade Beckham. “Options” that aren’t essentially granted to a team coming off of a three-win season.

The first team that comes up in trade talks with the Giants for Odell Beckham Jr. is – surprise, surprise – the Cleveland Browns. The Browns have been very aggressive in the off-season and are making moves that actually “make sense” for a change. The Browns have the money under the cap to pay Beckham what he wants, they already acquired Jarvis Landry (a close friend of Beckham’s), and they have more than enough “draft-pick-capital” to trade to the NY Giants. The Browns have the 1st and 4th overall picks and also have three picks in the second round.

Source: Vivien Killilea/Getty Images North America

Depending on how the Giants wanted to play this, they could end up with the 2nd and 4th overall picks of this year’s draft, and in addition pick up maybe two more second round picks — if the Browns wanted to get really crazy they might throw in a first or second round pick in the 2019 draft – but that probably wouldn’t be necessary.

With those picks, the Giants could do literally whatever they wanted. They could draft a quarterback and maybe Bradley Chubb, the pass rusher out of N.C. State. They could take Quinton Nelson, the offensive lineman from Notre Dame and Penn State running back Saquon Barkley OR they could trade that number two overall pick to a team like Buffalo or Arizona who might trade their first round pick and some more goodies to the Giants so they can grab a quarterback.

The bottom line is, why WOULDN’T the Giants trade Beckham? Although he is undeniably one of the most talented receivers in the league, he’s also a loud-mouthed, self-entitled diva with a target on his back — and he is also coming off of an ankle injury that ended his 2017 campaign. The Browns would and should do this deal because they can get their QB with the number one overall pick and have him set up with a pretty decent offense (better than what ANY of the top 2018 quarterback prospects had for themselves at college).

Source: Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images North America

The wide-receiver position is NOT the position you pay the big bucks to when you have other needs, and especially if you’re rebuilding. The Giants have to think “big picture” here and right now they are the third (and maybe even the fourth) best team in their division. Trading Beckham would help get things in the right direction for them immediately.

G.W. Gras

twitter @GeeSteelio