Getty Odell Beckham Jr. #13 of the Cleveland Browns.
Another day, another Odell Beckham Jr. trade rumor. Despite speculation running rampant of a potential OBJ-TB12 connection in Tampa Bay, former All-Pro wideout Brandon Marshall believes that Beckham will be catching passes from a different NFC quarterback this season.
“Where is he (Beckham) rehabbing right now?,” Marshall asked rhetorically on FS1’s First Things First. “Phoenix, Arizona.”
“Uh, yeah, he’s going to be on the Cardinals,” Marshall declared. “I know yesterday I talked about the Green Bay Packers, but I am looking at this and I am like J.J. Watt just goes there. He’s out there in Arizona falling in love with the weather that J.J. Watt is talking about. You’ve got Kyler. You’ve got big dog D-Hop (DeAndre Hopkins) on the other side. Why wouldn’t you get this done? So, I am going to double down on the Arizona Cardinals. It makes sense.”
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Cardinals Need to Upgrade the WR Position
Despite posing as an “air raid” offense, Kliff Kingsbury’s Cardinals finished ranked just 17th in passing offense for 2020. A major part of that has to do with quarterback Kyler Murray. The former Heisman winner averaged just 230.1 passing yards over his final eight games after initially sustaining a shoulder injury against the Miami Dolphins in Week 9. That is more than 36 yards per game fewer than he averaged over the eight games prior to the injury.
Yet, another crucial aspect of Arizona’s limited passing production was the lack of a legitimate second-option in the passing game. Superstar DeAndre Hopkins ranked third in the NFL in receiving yards with 1,407 on 115 receptions. From there, the Cardinals’ second-leading receiver was Christian Kirk, a player lauded as a breakout candidate after compiling 709 yards in just 13 games in 2019. Unfortunately, the Texas A&M product failed to live up to the hype in 2020, mustering up a mere 621 yards receiving –– 68th most in the NFL.
The biggest concern in Kirk’s production was the lack of above-average consistency. The wideout posted just four games with more than 57 yards receiving this past year, averaging 25.8 yards per game in 10 of his 14 contests.
The three most notable receivers behind Hopkins and Kirk on the current roster are Andy Isabella, KeeSean Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald. The latter of which could be calling it quits on his Hall of Fame career this offseason.
What Beckham Brings to the Table
Once perceived as a generational talent and one of the league’s very best at the wideout position, Beckham’s career has been marred by injuries and underwhelming production. After topping 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns in each of his first three seasons, the three-time Pro Bowler hasn’t surpassed 1,052 yards, nor six scores in any season since.
Beckham has appeared in just 39 of his 64 possible games since 2017 and is currently rehabbing from a torn ACL that limited him to seven games in 2020.
With that said, the former first-round pick is still just 28 years old and is only one season removed from a 1,000-yard campaign, despite murky quarterback play.
Some might argue Beckham has performed more like a No. 2 wide receiver rather than a go-to option since arriving in Cleveland. Whether that point holds weight or not wouldn’t matter much were he dealt to Arizona.
Combine a healthy Beckham alongside DeAndre Hopkins and chances are you have yourself one of, if not the most lethal receiving duo in all of football.