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Friday, November 5 became a wild day of NFL speculation the moment star playmaker Odell Beckham Jr. was released by the Cleveland Browns.
As NFL insider Field Yates aptly put it, “if the Browns restructure OBJ’s contract in a way that reduces his base salary to near the minimum, here’s a look at the NFL teams that should consider claiming him on waivers.” He then posted a graphic of all 31 teams besides Cleveland.
Fellow-insider Ian Rapoport also noted that “the expectation was Odell Beckham’s base salary would be reduced near the [league] minimum, with the rest going to him in a signing bonus.” He added that this “makes him very claimable” to other franchises.
Basically, it’s open season on Odell and no team should be considered off the table. Having said that, where does that leave the Kansas City Chiefs?
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KC Must Overcome 3 Factors to Sign OBJ
After Odell Beckham Sr. released an Instagram video criticizing Baker Mayfield, we mentioned that his son could be an option for the Chiefs in 2022. What we didn’t know at the time was that there’d be an opportunity to sign the dynamic wide-out even sooner than that.
There are three factors standing in the way of a Patrick Mahomes touchdown pass to OBJ, however, and here they are.
3. Available Cap Space
Assuming the reports above are accurate, this may not be a deciding factor for any franchise. Yates tweeted out a list of available cap space and highlighted “12 teams [that] have north of $5M in space.” Those organizations were the Jacksonville Jaguars, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks, Carolina Panthers, Los Angeles Chargers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Football Team, Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans. Where this could come into play is if a franchise is looking at claiming OBJ with an eye towards extending him long-term. A team like the Jags, Panthers or Seahawks could be interested in making an aggressive move like this. The Chiefs currently have a little over $2 million in cap per Yates’ list, ranking 28th in the NFL.
2. Chiefs Waiver Priority
According to CBS Sports, Kansas City currently ranks 18th out of 32 for NFL waiver claim priority. That means 17 teams will get a shot at Beckham before Brett Veach and the Chiefs. This is definitely the biggest factor standing in the way of this fantasy becoming a reality. Based on the low cost, it’s unlikely that the wide receiver falls to KC. The Detroit Lions currently have the top priority, followed by the Miami Dolphins, Texans (top 12 in cap), Jaguars (first in cap), New York Jets, New York Giants, WFT (top 12 in cap), Eagles (second in cap), Seahawks (top 12 in cap), Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, Broncos (top 12 in cap) and Browns.
1. IF Beckham Passes Through Waivers, Must Choose Chiefs
For some reason, if things don’t go as expected with OBJ’s financial negotiations, he could theoretically pass through waivers because of a higher cap-hit and price tag. It’s a long shot with reported interest around the league, but it would mean that the wide receiver becomes a free agent. At this point, Beckham would get to choose his team. Would he sign somewhere based on the situation? Playing alongside Mahomes, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce in Andy Reid’s offense sounds pretty enticing if that’s the case. The Chiefs could also get outbid by a contender who has more money or a personal relationship that OBJ has with a city or player. For example, the superstar has been linked to California franchises in the past and Los Angeles could be a major selling point for the Chargers or Rams.
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2 Ex-QBs Push Chiefs to Target OBJ
Let’s say the stars align and Beckham falls to the Chiefs at 18th waiver with a cheap enough contract that the franchise can afford. Two former quarterbacks turned NFL analysts think that KC should make a strong effort to pursue the dynamic threat.
First up is Dan Orlovsky, who recently made headlines by naming Mahomes the worst QB in the NFL “mechanically” speaking. During a segment of ESPN’s First Take, he listed Kansas City as the second-highest team that should “try to sign Odell Beckham.”
“They need a number two wide receiver outside of Tyreek Hill,” Orlovsky explained, “it depends if they think their defense is going to get better but I think that they need somebody outside of Tyreek and Travis Kelce to at least try and make that offense a little more explosive.”
NBC Sports analyst Chris Simms agreed with Orlovsky on an episode of Pro Football Talk, listing the Chiefs as his top “destination” for OBJ. “I think they need another weapon, their season is hanging in the balance here, there’s no doubt about that. I do think they’re a team that [would] know how to get him the ball and they need another weapon badly, and I would just love to see that firepower for the pure theatrics of it,” he stated.
At this point, where Beckham will end up is anyone’s guess, but the speculation does make for an exciting weekend of chatter.
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