Would the Giants be open to a healthy Odell Beckham Jr. returning?
Odell Beckham Jr. arrives for the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022. Credit: AFP via Getty Images/Angela Weiss
Joe Schoen said he was surprised when Odell Beckham Jr. showed up in the Giants locker room a few weeks back to visit with some former teammates.
“I had no idea he was in the building,” Schoen said on Tuesday.
But he also said no one should be surprised if the wide receiver one day returns in a more formal way.
The Giants general manager kept the door wide-open for a reunion with the lightning rod player his predecessor exiled to Cleveland.
“Obviously he has been a good player and he is a guy we would consider talking to when he’s healthy,” Schoen said at his Tuesday news conference, noting Beckham is still just nine months removed from a second ACL reconstruction he suffered in the Super Bowl as a member of the Rams. “Not sure where he is physically, but yeah, any way to upgrade the roster we’re going to consider and have conversations with their representatives.”
There have been reports that Beckham is amenable to such a reunion, but Schoen said he has yet to delve that far into thinking about any hypothetical preferences by the receiver.
“Does he?” Schoen said when asked about Beckham wanting to return to the Giants. “I don’t know. You tell me. You [in the media] probably talk to him more than I do.”
The Giants, who made no moves before the 4 p.m. trade deadline, are very thin at receiver, so Beckham certainly would be able to help this year’s team. But the Giants are also strapped for salary cap space.
Schoen spoke about the financial strain of activating players from the practice squad and paying those on injured reserve. The resources to pay Beckham, who won’t come cheap, don’t seem to be available now.
In March, when free agency begins for the 2023 season, that could be a very different story. And by that point Beckham would be 13 months removed from surgery.
“He’s a good player,” Schoen said. “If a player is healthy and will help us win football games we will pursue them if they fit what we’re looking for."
Schoen said the Giants had opportunities to make trades before the deadline, but decided to stand pat.
"Sitting up here 6-2 after eight games, I'm excited about that," Schoen said. "If something made sense, regardless of position, we explored a lot of opportunities. We've been on the phone a lot the last few days, but not just the last few days. These calls have been going on — I go back to August — on some of those players we had identified under certain parameters — years left, contract structure, where we were in terms of salary cap — that would make sense for us, and the value. You have to have two to tango in these deals and there was different value for the other team, and where we were, it just didn't work out for us."
With Anthony Rieber
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
