CLEVELAND, Ohio — Now that the trade deadline has passed, what’s next for Odell Beckham Jr. and the Browns?
Can Beckham and Baker Mayfield play together after Beckham’s dad posted video on his Instagram account of all the times Beckham has been open over the past six games and Mayfield either didn’t look his way or missed him on a throw?
Not included in the montage were some of the rough moments Beckham has had this season, including a fourth-down drop in the red zone in the 47-42 loss to the Chargers, and a subpar game against the Broncos when he was dealing with a sprained right shoulder.
Nevertheless, Beckham’s father posting a video making Mayfield look bad ruffled a lot of feathers on Tuesday, inside the walls of the Browns’ facility and out. The post had more than 388,000 views by nightfall, and even LeBron James took up for his friend OBJ, tweeting, “OBJ will show again why he’s special. WR1 #Free OBJ.’’
Former Browns running back Eric Metcalf also jumped to Beckham’s defense, tweeting, “PEOPLE NEED TO STOP MAKING @obj OUT TO BE THE PROBLEM, he’s a special player, and quite frankly, we’re making him look like a scrub.’’
Beckham’s dad’s post was one thing, but the fact that he left it up all day to gain traction and doubled-down in the replies added insult to injury. He even used three green checks to reply to a comment about Mayfield that “he’s either hating on Odell or he just doesn’t want him shining.”
Furthermore, Beckham didn’t weigh in on the post all day to say that they were his father’s views and not his own, or that he asked him to take it down and he refused.
It means the Browns will have to decide if keeping Beckham around is worth it, or if they’d rather part ways in the best interest of their quarterback and their 4-4 team, which has a huge AFC North game Sunday in Cincinnati.
Beckham’s camp, which undoubtedly asked the Browns to trade him by Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline, has probably already requested a release or will do so. The problem is that the Browns still owe Beckham more than $8 million of his $15.75 million this season, and if they release him, it’s unlikely any team will claim him with that salary.
With the trade deadline passed, vested veterans are subject to waivers before they becomes free agents. If no one claimed him, the Browns would be on the hook for the remainder of his salary.
Beckham and his camp could try to come up with something creative, such as giving up the some of the money he’s owed. In that scenario, he could make some of it up from a new team.
The Browns could also try to smooth things over and get through the rest of the season with Beckham on the roster, if Mayfield is amenable to that. He will have a say in the matter, because his performance will be affected, and he’s still their quarterback of the future despite his shaky start to the season.
Beckham, who has no guaranteed money after this season, will be gone after the season if not before, so the Browns’ loyalty is definitely with Mayfield.
In the event they try to make it work, the Browns would have to sit down with Beckham and see where his head is at. If he’s not on board with what his father posted and was trying to stay out of the fray, perhaps there’s a path forward.
But his silence on that James tweet indicated that he wants out as much as some in his inner circle.
The Browns will also have to sit down with Mayfield and see if he feels comfortable having Beckham on the field. As it was, Mayfield targeted him only once during Sunday’s 15-10 loss to the Steelers on a 6-yard screen pass in the second quarter. He overthrew him deep at the 2 on the final drive, but the pass was nullified by a roughing the passer call. Beckham, who has only 17 receptions and no TDs this season despite being targeted a team-high 34 times, was on the field for 43 snaps, 73%, second only to Jarvis Landry’s 53 for 90%.
Last season, Mayfield played a freer, more aggressive style of football, and his numbers skyrocketed with Beckham off the field. Granted, he played some bad defenses down the stretch, but he seems to play with more confidence when he’s not trying to make it work with Beckham.
There are other things to consider.
Browns second-year GM Andrew Berry must establish that players can’t stomp their way out of town. Tight end David Njoku tried that last season and quickly discovered that Berry wouldn’t cave. In that instance, however, the Browns determined that Njoku could help the team, and with a cap hit of only $3.03 million last year, it made fiscal sense. Njoku is also proof that you can go home again after things get weird. He asked to be traded twice and pouted some behind the scenes early on, but got himself right and is now on board.
If Berry releases Beckham, it will be because he’s determined that it’s addition by subtraction, and that it will help the Browns right the ship and get back to trying to make the playoffs. If Beckham is a distraction, it’s bad for the team in this high stakes season.
Another option — albeit unlikely — would be for the Browns to place Beckham on IR with his right shoulder injury, which really is a problem. The injury involves torn ligaments in the shoulder, and it might require surgery at some point.
One unfortunate thing about all of this is that Beckham really has been a model player behind the scenes, willingly playing in pain in the 17-14 loss to the Broncos, and not complaining about his opportunities.
It just seems that the one target against the Steelers, in a game in which the Browns scored only 10 points, was the last straw for him and his inner circle. It marked the fourth time this season with yardage in the 20s or less.
Another big thing is the Browns don’t want him to end up with a team such as the Chiefs or Raiders, where he could come back to haunt them. Both teams are in need of receivers, especially with Vegas’ Henry Ruggs III being charged with felony DUI on Tuesday.
The Browns were really hoping that Beckham and Mayfield would find their rhythm, with OBJ being a key piece of a deep playoff run. He felt he could’ve been the difference in the loss to the Chiefs last season, and was poised for big things. He had the hype videos to back him up, and was eager to win a championship for Cleveland alongside his BFF Landry.
But now, it’s probably best for the Browns to #FreeOBJ, and in the process, also free themselves.
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