In the end, the 2019 season wasn’t much different for Odell Beckham, Jr. in his first season with the Cleveland Browns, relative to what he had become used to with the New York Giants. Losing seasons, no playoffs, self-inflicted drama. Check, check, check.
The Browns thought they scored a major coup when they acquired the All-Pro wide receiver this offseason via trade, sending draft picks in the first and third rounds, plus starting safety Jabrill Peppers, to the Giants for him. All it got them was a worse record than last season.
Beckham finished his first season with the Browns catching only 74 passes for 1035 yards and four touchdowns, posting the worst per-game averages of his career. The 27-year old had been battling a groin injury, it must be noted, throughout the entire season.
But he also managed to attract plenty of negative attention with his comments when asked about his future, seemingly making indications that he may have intentions of trying to find himself on another team in 2020. He tried to say otherwise last week, but some of the damage had already been done.
With another embarrassing loss in the season finale, Beckham elected to play it straight, after having previously skipped some media sessions after other recent losses, telling reporters that he has big plans for next season.
“I’m gonna win in this offseason”, he said. “2019 has been a year of the losses and all these things, and I feel like I’ve taken them with great humility. I just learned a lot about myself. I’m just positive looking into 2020. I’m excited. I’m excited for whoever I face. I’m excited every time I line up, and I’m gonna give you every single bit of what I can each and every play. It’s not a threat or promise”.
Odell: “I’m gonna win in this offseason.” pic.twitter.com/sIxVPPH6eN
— Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) December 29, 2019
It’s no guarantee, however, that he will actually be on the roster in 2020, especially with John Dorsey as the team’s general manager, who has traded away more players since taking the job than anybody else in the NFL. He has even traded players that he himself has traded for or drafted, so he wouldn’t hesitate to move Beckham if he felt it would be best for the team.
Ultimately, though, I don’t expect anything to happen on that front, and realistically, I find it hard to imagine the Browns being worse next year. Then again, they are the Browns and have a tendency to have a surprise or two up their sleeves in that department, so…stay tuned.
