Analyst suggests Odell Beckham Jr. should reunite with former team in need of help

Eyebrows were raised after free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. teased earlier this week that he may want to reunite with the New York Giants when current Giants star wideout Malik Nabers told Beckham via Instagram that "we still got work to do." 

NFL analyst Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports is among those who think Beckham rejoining his first NFL team this summer could benefit everybody involved. 

"This actually makes some sense," Benjamin wrote for a piece published Wednesday about the Giants giving Beckham a call. "'OBJ' is still a fan favorite among contingents of Giants faithful for the spunky playmaking that made him an NFL phenom at the start of his career. And some added receiver depth couldn't hurt behind returning starters Nabers and Darius Slayton. If coach Brian Daboll is trying to squeeze what he can out of (quarterback) Russell Wilson before turning to (rookie) Jaxson Dart under center, Beckham registers as a decent low-risk gamble to give New York another set of proven hands off the bench."

Beckham originally entered the NFL when the Giants made him the 12th overall pick of the 2014 draft, and he made Pro Bowl squads in each of his first three seasons. While Big Blue traded Beckham to the Cleveland Browns after the 2018 campaign, the individuals responsible for that transaction are no longer associated with the Giants. 

At 32 years old, Beckham is now a shell of what he was when in his prime after he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while with the Browns in October 2020 and then tore the ACL in the same knee while playing for the Los Angeles Rams during Super Bowl LVI in February 2022. Most recently, he recorded just nine catches for 55 yards over nine games with the Miami Dolphins this past season.

That said, ESPN stats show the Giants finished the 2024 regular season ranked 30th in the league with an average of 294.8 offensive yards per game and 31st with an average of 16.1 points scored per contest. It's believed Daboll and Giants general manager Joe Schoen could be shown the door in January if the club endures a third straight losing campaign, so logic suggests they have nothing to lose in seeing if Beckham would be interested in attending some training-camp workouts. 

If nothing else, Beckham is a Super Bowl champion who could serve as a mentor for Nabers, Jalin Hyatt and other young offensive playmakers on a roster that outlets such as DraftKings Sportsbook assume will lose more games than it wins. The Giants bringing Beckham home via a team-friendly deal could also give fans a couple of nice moments during what may become another lost season for the franchise.