The return of Odell Beckham Jr. to the New York Giants was one of the most notable stories of the off-season for Big Blue.
Even though it’s been a decade since OBJ rewrote the record books in his meteoric rise to fame, Beckham still gets Giants fans excited. Even diminished from his prime, a healthy Beckham has the potential to be a useful piece for the Giants.
Former Pro Bowl cornerback DeAngelo Hall recently spoke to Hard Rock Bet, and says Giants fans are right to be excited about Beckham’s return.
“I saw Odell run up and down and get in and out of his breaks,” Hall said. “To me, it looks like he still has it.
We haven’t heard his name for a while, but he’s such an influential guy for the culture. It’s great for the NFL to get him back on a roster. From what I saw during OTAs, he still looks good. We saw him play in the NFL flag football games, and I thought he was still moving really well. I’m excited to watch him.”
At one time, Beckham was the Giants’ whole offense. That time has passed and the Giants aren’t expecting him to be “The Guy” at this stage in his career. However — and assuming he makes the team — Hall believes that Beckham can help in the locker room as well as on the field.
“He can have a huge impact,” Hall added, speaking on how Beckham can help the Giants’ young offense. “Experience is so valuable, and you’re talking about someone who was one of the best players at his position. Someone who became one of the biggest stars in the league after making one of the best plays of all time. He will bring such a veteran presence to that locker room. Look at the young guys like Malik Nabers. He’s a great player already, but now he’ll be able to learn from Odell too. People can say what they want about OBJ, the celebrity. But the football player, that’s definitely a guy I want to put around my young receivers. He’ll help them develop their route running and be able to teach them how to get open in the NFL.”
Hall was a long-time veteran when the Giants drafted Beckham in 2014. He came into the NFL as a second round pick for the Atlanta Falcons in 2004 and joined the Washington Commanders in 2008. Hall was a mainstay in the Washington secondary by the time Beckham entered the NFL, and he says it was OBJ who convinced him it was time to call it a career.
“I had to cover OBJ as a young guy,” Hall said. “When I went up against him, that’s when I knew it was time for me to retire. That dude just moved differently.”
The confidence he plays with is infectious. When you have a guy who feels like he can win every one-on-one, it rubs off on every player in that locker room. I think the Giants needed someone with that type of bravado, too.”
There’s just something magnetic about Beckham, that eyes are drawn to him even at this point in his career. Hall believes that not only is that good for the Giants, it’s good for the NFL as a whole.
“The NFL is better when you have stars out on the field, and OBJ is a superstar,” Hall said. “He can still move, and he has some of the best hands I’ve ever seen. I like where the Giants are. They’re young. They hired a great head coach in John Harbaugh and got some good pieces in the offseason. If Nabers gets healthy, that could be some duo with Beckham Jr.”
“I’m rooting for OBJ.”
The Giants, and Giants fans, are rooting for OBJ too.
