Getty Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.
The Cleveland Browns spent much of a disappointing 6-10 campaign last season battling rumors that the team’s star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was disgruntled and eager to be traded from the team that acquired him via a blockbuster just a few months earlier.
After weeks of speculation as the season was winding down, Beckham finally came out and shot down the rumors that were spreading like wildfire that he would demand a trade and not be back in Cleveland.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Beckham told reporters. “I’ll be here. We’ll figure this thing out. It’s just too special to leave. [I heard I want to go] to the Steelers. I heard Jarvis wanted to go to the Cardinals. It’s just easy to talk about us.
“We’re going to be here [next season]. We’re going to do it again, and we’re going to be what we felt like we should’ve been [in 2019]. We’ll correct all the little mistakes. It’s just too good here. I didn’t buy a house here to sell it.”
Despite breaking the 1,000-yard barrier, Beckham did not play up to the expectations set forth after the trade that landed him with the Browns in the offseason. Beckham finished his first season in Cleveland with 1,035 yards and four touchdowns.
Report: Browns Have no Plans to Trade Odell Beckham Jr.
From Super Bowl Live: The #Browns want to move forward with WR Odell Beckham Jr, but how present he is this offseason and for OTAs may go a long way in determining that.
The Browns dealt first and third-round picks and safety Jabrill Peppers for Beckham last offseason, hoping to spark an offense that showed promise with No. 1 overall pick, Baker Mayfield, at the controls and OBJ’s college teammate Jarvis Landry snagging balls. Instead, the offense floundered under first-year head coach Freddie Kitchens, who was let go after the season.
But despite the lack of success, the Browns are reportedly planning to bring the whole gang back and try it again with new head coach Kevin Stefanski.
“From what I am told, the Browns very much want to keep Odell Beckham Jr. in the fold,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said on Friday. “They don’t want to trade him, they don’t plan to trade him. That is where they are right now.”
Beckham had core surgery in the offseason to repair a hip and groin injury.
Browns Want Increased Presence From Odell Beckham in Offseason
GettyCleveland Browns WR Odell Beckham Jr.
Rapoport said the Browns would like to see Beckham more engaged in the offseason. His absence at OTAs and his limited availability in training camp due to injury had a noticeable impact on his chemistry with quarterback Baker Mayfield.
“What the Browns would like to see is some level of engagement for Beckham in this offense as they all try to learn a new offense in the offseason,” Rapoport said, via WKYC. “That would likely mean increased presence in OTAs, increased presence in offseason conditioning — some way to show that he wants to be there, is engaged and kind of sets an example for some of the younger teammates.
“If that happens, if he proves he’s a team-first guy for this new coaching staff, I would imagine that he sticks around in Cleveland at the least for one more year to try to make it work.”
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Browns’ Offseason Plans for Odell Beckham Revealed