Odell Beckham Jr.'s return to the New York Giants has generated plenty of buzz this offseason. After years of bouncing around NFL rosters, his storybook homecoming is easy for fans to buy into. But the narrative is getting a bit out of hand as the season opener comes into view.
Grant Gordon of NFL.com recently listed ten players he expects to contend for the Comeback Player of the Year award this season. Somehow, Beckham Jr. made the cut at No. 9.
His story is as good as anybody's, but are we already forgetting that OBJ was fighting to make the Giants' 53-man roster right up until the cut deadline?
Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr. has no business being a Comeback Player of the Year contender
Gordon made the case for Beckham Jr., saying, "Should he play in Week 1 against the Cowboys in a Sunday night showdown with the world watching, it’ll mark his first game in a Giants uniform since Dec. 2, 2018. Eight years later, if he’s got anything left in the tank, OBJ can empty it here and he can make it … all the way to NFL Honors."
The top six players on his list are all legitimate choices. Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Donald, Daniel Jones, Kyler Murray, Jayden Daniels, and Micah Parsons have compelling cases. The list should end there, though.
In reality, the award will probably go to one of the quarterbacks coming off an injury, most likely Mahomes. In the last eight years, the award has gone to a quarterback seven times. While it's branded as recognition for a bounce-back season, this is a "quarterback who got hurt last year" award more often than not.
But if OBJ was expected to play a prominent role in the Giants' offense, his inclusion would make a bit more sense. Instead, he barely squeezed his way onto the roster. He played deep into preseason games and seems to be the fourth wide receiver in the pecking order at best.
It would be surprising if Beckham Jr. reached 40 targets this season. When he's competing with a full season of Mahomes, those numbers won't be anywhere close to enough.
The 33-year-old receiver doesn't have to be productive to have a successful season. If he can be a reliable veteran off the bench, serving as a mentor to the younger players on the squad, he'll have brought value to New York. We don't have to push him into award conversations, though.
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