Did Cowboys make it easier for Odell Beckham Jr. to return to Giants?
Odell Beckham Jr. during a game with Giants in 2018. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
A path for Odell Beckham Jr.’s return to the Giants seems to have cleared up — though it remains to be seen if a report about the wide receiver’s ACL recovery will make general manager Joe Schoen reconsider.
The Cowboys, who have publicly courted the free agent, apparently don’t know if Beckham’s torn ACL has healed enough to make him available by mid-January, according to ESPN — lending some weight to the idea that owner Jerry Jones is tamping down on his previous fervor. Meanwhile, a separate report said the Eagles may be interested, but coach Nick Sirianni appeared to quash that in a conference call with New York media.
“We really love our wideout room,” Sirianni said. “We feel like we have a very complete wideout room . . . Odell Beckham is a great player. Everybody knows that. But we’re really, really pleased with our offense, our wide receiver group.”
Beckham met with the Giants and Bills last week and is reportedly seeking a multiyear deal after tearing his ACL in last year’s Super Bowl.
Injury updates
DL Leonard Williams didn’t practice after sustaining a neck injury in last Sunday’s game against the Commanders and it’s unclear whether he’ll be available for the next game against the Eagles. OL Josh Ezeudu (neck) is “fighting through” his injury and getting better, Brian Daboll said, but didn’t practice. G Shane Lemieux (toe) and CB Adoree’ Jackson (knee) also didn’t practice. Daboll said that once S Xavier McKinney gets the pins out of his surgically repaired fingers, the Giants will consider putting a club on his hand and getting him back to action. He’ll likely be unavailable this week.
Playoff computations
Daboll said the Giants analytic department continues to parse playoff scenarios — something that informs in-game decisions.
Daboll Sunday decided to punt on fourth-and-3 at the Commanders’ 45, a move that eventually preserved the tie. “That’s part of the discussion, absolutely,” he said. “There’s a lot of things, those meetings last just as long as watching those plays, even more so. So, there’s a lot of things, particularly at this time of year right now that you’re talking about. There is every game, but then as it goes later and later into the season, certainly things like that pop up.”
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
