Whether he wants to or not, New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh is stepping into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter this offseason.
Don't expect the 63-year-old to cosplay as Dumbledore anytime soon, but his evaluation process makes him the real-life version of the infamous Sorting Hat.
According to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, after OTAs and mandatory minicamp, Big Blue's wide receiver room is already starting to take shape. Malik Nabers, Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin III, and Malachi Fields have already been sorted onto the 53-man roster. They are seemingly locked in as Jaxson Dart's top-five wideouts.
But as the Sorting Hat works its way through the rest of the room, a harsh reality is staring Odell Beckham Jr., the nostalgia play of all nostalgia plays, in the face -- he's officially on the bubble.
Giants' early WR assumptions leave Odell Beckham Jr. facing the Sorting Hat
OBJ made his highly anticipated return during OTAs earlier this spring, following a series of unfortunate injury updates coming from the wideout group.
It started with Nabers' recovery timeline looking more uncertain than ever after the media found out the 23-year-old had a second "clean-up" surgery earlier in the offseason. Harbs was on record saying that it wasn't a "simple knee injury" and that Leek was in the "slog of his rehab."
Not exactly encouraging, but also not necessarily the worst update in the world.
But things shifted rather drastically after pseudo-receiver-slash-return-man Gunner Olszewski suffered a torn Achilles at practice, landing him on IR. His absence, along with Leek's up-in-the-air status forced Big Blue's hand, which led them to bringing in -- and subsequently signing -- Beckham, Braxton Berrios, and JuJu Smith-Schuster to non-guaranteed, one-year, vet minimum deals.
The three veterans joined an already crowded room, consisting of Jalin Hyatt, Isaiah Hodgins, Beaux Collins, Dalen Cambre, Xavier Gipson, and Ryan Miller.
No offense to Berrios, Smith-Schuster, Hyatt, or anyone else -- but none of them bring the same intrigue as Odell.
To his credit, Beckham has made the most of his opportunities so far. He has looked healthy, flashed his signature hands, and quickly built chemistry with Dart. The 33-year-old even admitted to reporters he knows a roster spot isn't a given.
Which brings us back to the hat...
The sorting process is a brutal numbers game. If Nabers avoids the PUP list, the Giants will likely carry just six receivers on the active roster. With five spots locked down, that leaves a dozen players fighting for one single spot.
The team has zero financial loyalty here. Beckham's non-guaranteed deal means New York can cut him tomorrow without losing a penny. He was signed as an insurance policy, not a lifetime achievement award.
OBJ is doing everything right, but being a once-upon-a-legend won't change his situation. The Sorting Hat is about to make its final choice, and time is running out to convince it to let him stay.
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