Odell Beckham Jr. on attention his catch has received: 'It's been pretty crazy. Definitely surreal.'
New York Giants rookie wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. signs autographs for fans during a Steiner Sports signing at Roosevelt Field on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014. Credit: James Escher
One day later, Odell Beckham Jr.'s phone still was buzzing and he still was overcome by all the attention his highlight-reel catch has received.
That's what happens after you make what many have called one of the best catches -- maybe even the best -- in NFL history.
"It's been pretty crazy. Definitely surreal," the Giants rookie receiver said Monday night at Roosevelt Field mall, where he signed autographed pictures of his catch in an event with Steiner Sports.
"This is just kind of something that I'm not really used to," said Beckham, the 12th overall pick out of LSU. "Even though I went to a big school, this is all a lot to take in. It's kind of hard to avoid right now."
In case you still somehow missed it: Beckham reeled in a 43-yard touchdown pass out of the air with one hand while his body was nearly parallel to the ground Sunday night. Making the play even more remarkable was that the Cowboys' Brandon Carr held Beckham's left arm, drawing a flag for pass interference, while they ran down the right sideline before Beckham leaped in the air. He came down in the end zone.
"I was just trying to hold on to the ball," he said. "Sometimes you hit that ground and the ball pops out, so I was just trying to do my best to hold on."
Beckham said he has received "an outrageous number" of congratulatory texts and tweets. For Beckham, the most surprising one came from LeBron James, who tweeted: "Man I just witnessed the greatest catch ever possibly by Odell Beckham Jr! WOW!!!!"
"Him being my favorite athlete, and just seeing that . . . words don't even do it justice," Beckham said.
Beckham said many of his teammates told him it was the best catch any of them has ever seen. Beckham, however, put his behind David Tyree's helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII.
"That was the craziest catch I've ever seen, still, to this day. He had the ball on his helmet; it's not like he caught it with his hands," Beckham said. "It's on his helmet and he's cradling it in, so that, still, to me, is the craziest."
