NY Giants never should have traded Odell Beckham Jr.

On Janaury 2nd, 2018, David Gettleman infamously stated, “We didn’t sign him to trade him” in regards to the endless questions and rumors about Odell possibly being traded in the offseason.

Gettleman reiterated this notion at the Combine in February, doubling down on his stance that they wouldn’t trade Odell. This made sense for many reasons.

The thought of trading Odell at the time seemed very unlikely unless the Giants got blown away with an offer they couldn’t refuse. They had just signed him to a five-year deal and it didn’t make sense both financially and for football reasons to trade Odell.

Before the trade itself, Odell had two notable off-the-field incidents that may have been the last straw for Giants management. During the season, Odell did an interview with ESPN where he didn’t necessarily give a ringing endorsement for Eli Manning. He talked about his lack of arm strength and mobility late in his career and how it has essentially held the offense back. Add in Odell having Lil Wayne sit in on the interview for no reason and it was an even worse look for the three-time Pro Bowler. Head Coach Pat Shurmur was furious and Odell apologized to the entire team during a team meeting.

After the season, Odell made news for being in Paris. A video circulated of Odell sitting in bed with a woman with pizza on the bed and alleged drug use displayed in the video. This further provided fuel for the fire to spread and the Odell trade rumors never went away. At different points, it was reported that the 49ers, Rams, and Patriots had varying interests and conversations surrounding a Beckham trade.

None of these rumors ever materialized and Odell remained a Giant through the first week of March 2018. On March 13th, 2019, the NY Giants finally decided to part ways with Odell Beckham Jr. and traded him to the Cleveland Browns.