In his three NFL seasons, Odell Beckham Jr. has quickly become one of the most polarizing players in the NFL. When it comes to his critics, there are almost to unique personas Beckham Jr. is judged as: The uber-productive pass-catcher who is re-writing record books and undoubtedly one of the league's most talented players, and the boat-riding, kicking-net fight, headline stealing personality who is a detriment to his team because of what he does off the field.
Wherever you stand on Beckham, there is a moment in time that unequivocally created his star, and it came almost three years ago, during another Sunday Night Football matchup between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys.
Beckham's status for the Giants' opener against Dallas this Sunday is in doubt; the latest update has him at a 50-50 chance of playing. But on Nov. 23, 2014, in Beckham's seventh career pro game, Beckham sprinted down the right sideline, his path taking him toward the pylon, and with Brandon Carr pulling him to the ground, Beckham pinched a ball out of the air with one hand, elevating his status from 'notable rookie' to 'global phenomenon.'
When Beckham made that catch, he was 21 years old, having celebrated his birthday 18 days prior. The first six games of his NFL career, the prologue to when the book on Beckham truly began, saw Beckham rack up 31 receptions and 463 yards. He already had two 100-yard games, though the numbers and statistics became mere footnotes on the bold, italicized paragraph that came to define Beckham.
And then there was the boat trip, an excursion taken by Beckham and his fellow Giants wide receivers flew to Miami a week before their playoff showdown with the Green Bay Packers. The decision was chastised, and used as a scapegoat, and charged for the subsequent loss in Green Bay. And then following said loss, Beckham punched a hole in the wall in the locker room. And who could forget the fight he picked with a kicking net on the sideline?
These two realities — the ability accumulate receptions and yardage by the barrel load, and the one-handed catch, or the viral meltdown — are the yin and yang of how Beckham is typecast in the media.
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When Beckham's fourth season begins, whether it's this Sunday night on NBC against a team and on a broadcast that catapulted him into the spotlight, or in Week 2, the attention will be firmly planted in the fourth-year receiver's corner. An iso-camera will follow his every step on the sideline, Cris Collinsworth will comment when Beckham paces past the kicking net, and Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison will debate whether Beckham is an overall net-positive for the Giants, and how Ben McAdoo should 'handle' the flamboyant receiver. Beckham moves the dial as proficiently as he moves the sticks, and rightsholders discuss how they will cover him in their pregame meetings much like opposing defenses.
The dichotomy of these two Beckham's, fair or foul, has been molded the past three years by one of the NFL's most marketable players. That wouldn't be possible without a very good NFL player behind it. In his first two NFL seasons, Beckham broke a record held by Randy Moss, racking up more yards in his first two years of service than any other NFL receiver in history. He became the fastest receiver in the league's history to eclipse the 3,000-yard mark, and the 4,000th-yard mark, and 150 career receptions, and 250 career receptions.
But these are not benchmarks that mitigate the effects of an Instagram picture featuring Beckham and other Giants wide receivers on a boat (not because of his poor choice for aquatic footwear, but the timing of the trip itself). A blow-up on the sideline is seen more as a temper-tantrum than the passion of a player who wants to win, which toes a gray line. In 2013, Terrell Owens wondered out loud why Dez Bryant's emotions on the sideline outbursts were categorized as outbursts, where as Tom Brady's were considered passion. As much noise as Beckham can make because he is genuinely one of football's best offensive players, the volume will always be at its loudest when the song's lyrics aren't about what's happening on the field, and it won't be singing his praises. That one has to even ask if it is unfair to judge Beckham under these premises, for the choices he makes off the field, or for not taking failure well, tells you all you need to know about said questions.
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The Giants are coming off a playoff appearance that was the epilogue to the boat trip and the Instagram post. That the Giants lost fueled the engine for that boat to remain afloat in sports talk-radio and above the fold. But make no mistake: Had the Giants won, and the boat wouldn't have sunk, only lost steam.
Because such is life for Beckham, and will continue to be for the soon-to-be 25 year-old receiver. Next to second-year talent Sterling Sheppard, and veteran Brandon Marshall, it will be difficult for secondaries to apply the same level of attention to Beckham as previous years; for everyone else, it will be quite easy. In a perfect, equitable, measured, and fair universe, Beckham would be judged by in large for what he did starting in the first and ending in the fourth quarter.
Remember this though, with the Giants getting set for a Sunday opener in Dallas where, whether he plays or not, Beckham's quality of character and merits as a teammate will be debated. Which should tell you all you need to know about the weight those non-football critiques carry.