Getty Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. #3 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates at M&T Bank Stadium on January 02, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Buffalo Bills are on the short list for star receiver Odell Beckham Jr., one insider revealed.
The Pro Bowl receiver is nearing the final stages of his rehab from a torn ACL suffered in the 2022 Super Bowl, and growing closer to making a choice on what team he will join to end the season. Heading into Week 5, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported that Beckham is still a few weeks away from returning to the field, and said the Bills are among the top contenders to land him when he does come back.
Bills in the Running for Beckham, Says Rapoport
Rapoport noted that the Bills have been identified as a possible suitor for Beckham, along with three other Super Bowl contenders, but it could come down to money, with Beckham looking for a multi-year deal.
“The Bucs, Packers, Bills and Chiefs have all been discussed as possible suitors for Beckham, though how much money the wide receiver warrants on a multi-year deal could rule out some of the possibilities,” Rapoport wrote on October 9.
Rapoport reported that Beckham is hoping to return to the field by the middle of November, so it would be a surprise if he signed with a team anytime soon.
Ubiquitous free agent WR Odell Beckham Jr. is targeting a mid-November return to the field, sources say. And he’ll have his suitors.
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“Any team could lock Beckham up now and take him through the final stages of rehab, but a later signing is far more likely,” Rapoport reported.
The Bills have already made a few cap moves that could keep them in the running for Beckham. In August, the team restructured the contract of left tackle Dion Dawkins to free up more than $5.6 million in cap space.
Rapoport noted that Bills edge rusher Von Miller has been busy trying to recruit his friend and former Los Angeles Rams teammate, and this week dropped a cryptic remark that he knows where Beckham is headed.
“The way I like to think,” Miller said, “I think when it’s time to start chopping the block, I think when it’s time to get down the business, we already know where he’s going to be at. In my eyes, I think I know where he’s going to be at.”
Bills May Need Help This Year
While Beckham may be looking for a team to make a long-term investment in him, the Bills could be in need of more immediate help. The team’s wide receiving corps has been hit hard by injuries, with veteran slot receiver Jamison Crowder placed on injured reserve after breaking his ankle.
Special teams ace Jake Kumerow, who had taken on a larger role in the passing game this year, has also been lost for several weeks with an ankle injury, and deep threat Gabe Davis has been playing through an ailing ankle.
Some believe the injuries increase the likelihood that the Bills target Beckham. Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports named the Bills as the only team that could convince Beckham not to return to the Rams to defend his Super Bowl title.
“If anyone’s gonna pry Beckham from another late-year L.A. run, it’ll almost assuredly be the steady Super Bowl favorites,” Benjamin wrote. “Buffalo has justified title aspirations, Josh Allen is an easy draw as one of the game’s top play-makers, and defensive leader Von Miller has repeatedly admitted he and Beckham, a friend and training partner, have discussed a team-up in blue. Buffalo also has reason to add receiver depth, with Gabe Davis coming off an injury and Jamison Crowder out indefinitely behind Stefon Diggs.”
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Insider Updates Bills’ Standing in Odell Beckham Jr. Sweepstakes