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Odell Beckham Jr. is coming home to the New York Giants.
One of the most popular yet polarizing players of a generation for the franchise is returning as Beckham agreed to a one-year deal with the Giants on Monday, an individual with knowledge of the situation told NorthJersey.com and The Record.
When Beckham left the Giants, traded away by a previous regime in 2018, a reunion seemed improbable at best. That's no longer the case.
A source close to Beckham recently indicated to NorthJersey.com and The Record that he is "really, really hoping" to rejoin the team that drafted him and for whom he swiftly reached unexpected heights and worldwide popularity. "The Catch" created the OBJ phenomenon, with one-handed catches taking on a life of their own, and at every level of the sport.
Yet a Beckham return would not be as that OBJ, but as Harbaugh suggested, Odell 2.0.
That's not an insult, except maybe for those who see it as saying Beckham is old and washed, and it's understandable. In some ways, this is a leap of faith. Those inside the Giants' organization have never doubted Beckham's competitive spirit, however, and Harbaugh can appreciate the humility for a player that comes with all that water under the bridge.
Beckham wants more than anything to bring his NFL career full circle by catching passes from Jaxson Dart and providing a generation of Giants fans to whom he never had the chance to say thank you and good-bye with that same opportunity all these years later.
The signing of Beckham is not for nostalgia, not for Harbaugh and the front office, but because the Giants owe it to themselves to find out if their former first-round pick and 2014 Offensive Rookie of the Year has enough juice left in his game to offer despite not playing all of last season.
There are opportunities to be taken at the moment, and at the right price, with Beckham likely to command a salary at the league minimum with incentives and no guaranteed money up front.
And make no mistake, as much as Beckham wants to be here, the Giants are looking for reinforcements.
The Giants held a workout for free agent receivers Monday morning, and Beckham had already worked out for the team back on April 20. Beckham, former Steelers and Chiefs' WR Juju Smith-Schuster, former Jets, Dolphins and Texans WR/PR Braxton Berrios and former Bears/Ravens WR Anthony Miller were the participants.
Beckham has been in Arizona continuing to train in order to be ready for if and when the call from the Giants comes. In terms of timing, getting Beckham into the building before the end of the offseason program would be beneficial for both.
Will Beckham have the explosiveness and breakaway speed that made him so dangerous as a playmaker in his 20s? That's unlikely. But he's always been a nuanced route runner, has great hands and - as he showed in a highly publicized March 21 flag football exhibition in Los Angeles - he still has an ability to go up and get the football in traffic.
Beckham and Harbaugh stayed in touch since their impromptu March 30 encounter at the owners' meetings in Arizona that fueled speculation that a return was not out of the question. All the while, Beckham believed he would get that chance with the Giants to settle “unfinished business” and close his career with a full circle final chapter.
The Giants hope Malik Nabers is on the football field and ready to go for Week 1, but it's an uncertain timetable as he recovers from knee surgery last October that included ACL and meniscus repairs. While it was encouraging to see Nabers participating in the dodgeball and softball events Saturday, even if he was not going full speed, the psychological boost could accelerate his recovery to its next step.
Darius Slayton is out until training camp after undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia, and he is the longest tenured Giant on the roster.
The newest hole in the depth chart was created Friday afternoon when reserve receiver and return man Gunner Olszewski ruptured his right Achilles tendon during the Giants' latest OTA (organized team activity) practice session. He will undergo surgery Monday, which leaves the Giants short at WR with just nine under contract and seven practices remaining in the spring.
The Giants wound up trading up into the third round on Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft to select Malachi Fields out of Notre Dame, and he has been running with the first team alongside newcomers Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III this spring.
That's why cashing in the lottery ticket that Beckham represents before the spring is out - even at age 33 - might just be worth the gamble. Any debate over whether Beckham can play well enough to challenge for a roster spot and contribute is best decided on the field.
"Odell wants to be the kind of player that can make a difference," Harbaugh said recently. "I'm pretty sure that he can make a team in the National Football League right now, but can he make a difference? It's something he wants to do. Is his body going to hold up in the way he wants it to? And all those things are questions that need to get answered for anybody at that age. You know Odell. He's confident, man. He's confident. He's working hard. He believes in himself."
Beckham played the first 59 games of his NFL career with the Giants, producing stats on par with some of the greatest receivers to ever suit up. His 5,476 receiving yards and 44 TDs compared to Jerry Rice (4,852 yards, 49 TDs), Larry Fitzgerald (4,373 yards, 32 TDs), Calvin Johnson (4,139 yards, 33 TDs) and Antonio Brown (4,072 yards, 20 TDs).
So where does Beckham stand in terms of expectations? He wants to be a Giant, and the Giants love the idea of having him back if all things are equal. There are those in the organization that never wanted him gone.
Signing Beckham between now and mandatory minicamp (June 8-10) would serve as an acclimation period. Have a news conference in which he can address his return, his expectations and that of Harbaugh and the team, and then send the players off to their abbreviated summer vacation in advance of the start of training camp in West Virginia on July 28.
Beckham and the Giants are in position to take advantage of a situation that holds plenty more substance than some would like to admit.
It was easy to envision Beckham being back in a Giants uniform on Saturday night. The fans were transported back a decade and the love fest was genuine for both sides.
While Beckham did not play in the softball game, he made his way to the field and caught up with Dart, Nabers, Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux among others, continuing the “what if” tease.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Odell Beckham Jr. agrees to deal with NY Giants
Continue reading...
One of the most popular yet polarizing players of a generation for the franchise is returning as Beckham agreed to a one-year deal with the Giants on Monday, an individual with knowledge of the situation told NorthJersey.com and The Record.
When Beckham left the Giants, traded away by a previous regime in 2018, a reunion seemed improbable at best. That's no longer the case.
A source close to Beckham recently indicated to NorthJersey.com and The Record that he is "really, really hoping" to rejoin the team that drafted him and for whom he swiftly reached unexpected heights and worldwide popularity. "The Catch" created the OBJ phenomenon, with one-handed catches taking on a life of their own, and at every level of the sport.
Yet a Beckham return would not be as that OBJ, but as Harbaugh suggested, Odell 2.0.
That's not an insult, except maybe for those who see it as saying Beckham is old and washed, and it's understandable. In some ways, this is a leap of faith. Those inside the Giants' organization have never doubted Beckham's competitive spirit, however, and Harbaugh can appreciate the humility for a player that comes with all that water under the bridge.
Beckham wants more than anything to bring his NFL career full circle by catching passes from Jaxson Dart and providing a generation of Giants fans to whom he never had the chance to say thank you and good-bye with that same opportunity all these years later.
The signing of Beckham is not for nostalgia, not for Harbaugh and the front office, but because the Giants owe it to themselves to find out if their former first-round pick and 2014 Offensive Rookie of the Year has enough juice left in his game to offer despite not playing all of last season.
There are opportunities to be taken at the moment, and at the right price, with Beckham likely to command a salary at the league minimum with incentives and no guaranteed money up front.
And make no mistake, as much as Beckham wants to be here, the Giants are looking for reinforcements.
The Giants held a workout for free agent receivers Monday morning, and Beckham had already worked out for the team back on April 20. Beckham, former Steelers and Chiefs' WR Juju Smith-Schuster, former Jets, Dolphins and Texans WR/PR Braxton Berrios and former Bears/Ravens WR Anthony Miller were the participants.
Beckham has been in Arizona continuing to train in order to be ready for if and when the call from the Giants comes. In terms of timing, getting Beckham into the building before the end of the offseason program would be beneficial for both.
Will Beckham have the explosiveness and breakaway speed that made him so dangerous as a playmaker in his 20s? That's unlikely. But he's always been a nuanced route runner, has great hands and - as he showed in a highly publicized March 21 flag football exhibition in Los Angeles - he still has an ability to go up and get the football in traffic.
Beckham and Harbaugh stayed in touch since their impromptu March 30 encounter at the owners' meetings in Arizona that fueled speculation that a return was not out of the question. All the while, Beckham believed he would get that chance with the Giants to settle “unfinished business” and close his career with a full circle final chapter.
The Giants hope Malik Nabers is on the football field and ready to go for Week 1, but it's an uncertain timetable as he recovers from knee surgery last October that included ACL and meniscus repairs. While it was encouraging to see Nabers participating in the dodgeball and softball events Saturday, even if he was not going full speed, the psychological boost could accelerate his recovery to its next step.
Darius Slayton is out until training camp after undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia, and he is the longest tenured Giant on the roster.
The newest hole in the depth chart was created Friday afternoon when reserve receiver and return man Gunner Olszewski ruptured his right Achilles tendon during the Giants' latest OTA (organized team activity) practice session. He will undergo surgery Monday, which leaves the Giants short at WR with just nine under contract and seven practices remaining in the spring.
The Giants wound up trading up into the third round on Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft to select Malachi Fields out of Notre Dame, and he has been running with the first team alongside newcomers Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III this spring.
That's why cashing in the lottery ticket that Beckham represents before the spring is out - even at age 33 - might just be worth the gamble. Any debate over whether Beckham can play well enough to challenge for a roster spot and contribute is best decided on the field.
"Odell wants to be the kind of player that can make a difference," Harbaugh said recently. "I'm pretty sure that he can make a team in the National Football League right now, but can he make a difference? It's something he wants to do. Is his body going to hold up in the way he wants it to? And all those things are questions that need to get answered for anybody at that age. You know Odell. He's confident, man. He's confident. He's working hard. He believes in himself."
Beckham played the first 59 games of his NFL career with the Giants, producing stats on par with some of the greatest receivers to ever suit up. His 5,476 receiving yards and 44 TDs compared to Jerry Rice (4,852 yards, 49 TDs), Larry Fitzgerald (4,373 yards, 32 TDs), Calvin Johnson (4,139 yards, 33 TDs) and Antonio Brown (4,072 yards, 20 TDs).
So where does Beckham stand in terms of expectations? He wants to be a Giant, and the Giants love the idea of having him back if all things are equal. There are those in the organization that never wanted him gone.
Signing Beckham between now and mandatory minicamp (June 8-10) would serve as an acclimation period. Have a news conference in which he can address his return, his expectations and that of Harbaugh and the team, and then send the players off to their abbreviated summer vacation in advance of the start of training camp in West Virginia on July 28.
Beckham and the Giants are in position to take advantage of a situation that holds plenty more substance than some would like to admit.
It was easy to envision Beckham being back in a Giants uniform on Saturday night. The fans were transported back a decade and the love fest was genuine for both sides.
While Beckham did not play in the softball game, he made his way to the field and caught up with Dart, Nabers, Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux among others, continuing the “what if” tease.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Odell Beckham Jr. agrees to deal with NY Giants
Continue reading...
