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The Cleveland Browns made it official on Friday, announcing that Odell Beckham Jr. will be active on Sunday for his first action of the season.
All signs pointed to Beckham getting on the field — from his tweets, to practice availability — but head coach Kevin Stefanski made it official during his press conference.
“No limitations,” Stefanski said of Beckham, per ESPN’s Jake Trotter. “He did everything. Took every rep.”
Browns defensive end Myles Garrett said Beckham came up to him on Monday and told him “it’s time.”
#Browns Myles Garrett said Odell Beckham Jr. looked at him Monday and said “It’s time.”
Garrett’s reaction?
“I just rubbed my hands together.”
It remains to be seen if Beckham will be on a snap count for the game, considering it’s his first action in 11 months. But his presence in pads alone will be a big boost for the team, which needed a new No. 1 pass-catcher after Jarvis Landry landed on injured reserve this week with a knee injury.
Beckham is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last year against the Bengals. He’s impressed every step of the way in his rehab but both he and the team have taken things slow in an effort to prevent re-injuring his knee.
“I’ve worked extremely hard to not only get back but improve and try to be better than I ever have been,” Beckham said, via Jake Trotter of ESPN. “So I’m definitely looking forward to it. It’s been a long time. It’s been a long time in that cave, putting yourself back together. I had a great team around me for the entire process, great support system. And it’s going to be special. Like I said, it’s been a long time.”
“At this point, we’re just running our race,” Beckham said on July 25. “I feel like in the past, I’ve been caught up in this question. I’m not really here for it anymore. Whenever I’m ready to get out on the field, that’s when it will be. Whenever the team, the docs, my team, gets cleared, we’ll be ready to go. Whenever that is, Week 1, Week 17, I don’t know. Whenever we’re ready, we’ll be ready.”
Odell Beckham Went Through ‘Spiritual Reconstruction’
Beckham feels like he’s in a way better place heading into this season, especially mentally. When he went in for his ACL rehab he said he told the staff he was there for “spiritual reconstruction.”
#Browns Odell Beckham Jr. said he had the words “ACL Rehab” changed on his paperwork to “Spiritual Reconstruction.”
“This is just my soul that I need to work on and I’ve found that I’m in a way better place.”
“This is just my soul that I need to work on and I’ve found that I’m in a way better place,” he said.
Beckham and the Browns will be a touchdown favorite against the Bears and rookie quarterback Justin Fields this weekend.
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Browns Make Final Call on Odell Beckham’s Week 3 Status