NFL News and Notes: The Odell Beckham Jr. Trade
Odell Beckham Jr. (left) will be helping instead of haunting the Browns. (Cleveland Sports Talk)
With the NFL currently holding its annual meeting right now, we thought it a perfect time to check in with some Fantasy football related tidbits…
The Giants sent shockwaves through the league earlier this month when they dealt Odell Beckham Jr. to Cleveland. Giants owner Dave Mara admitted that he was reluctant to make the move given how much he likes Beckham. Ultimately, Cleveland’s offer — a first round pick, a third round pick and safety Jabrill Peppers (expected to take over as a starter) — was “compelling.”
Let’s face it: Beckham can catch with the best of them (we all remember his play that may have been the greatest catch in history… see video below). However, change was necessary here given the off-field issues, on-field altercations and injury issues. It’s not as if the Giants were winning with Beckham; they only went 2-6 at home last year en route to a 5-11 finish, leaving them dead last in NFC East.
Beckham’s value goes up with the move to Cleveland as he’ll now be getting his passes from a budding star in quarterback Baker Mayfield. The Browns — laughing stocks for so long — made great strides last year and are now poised to actually contend for the division title.
On Sunday, New England tight end Rob Gronkowski ended weeks of speculation by announcing his retirement after nine seasons. A five-time Pro Bowler, he won’t be 30 until May, but after three Super Bowl wins and years of dominating the position, he’s clearly had enough, especially given the wave of injuries that he’s dealt with in recent seasons. It was obvious Gronk wasn’t himself this year.
Still, with 79 career touchdowns, he’s third all-time among tight ends, trailing only Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez. Only Jerry Rice has more postseason receiving touchdowns.
But is Gronkowski really done? His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said he wouldn’t be shocked if Gronkowski decided he wanted to come back.
Gronk wasn’t the only stud pass catcher to pack it in this weekend. Also on Sunday, former Eagle and Chief wide receiver Jeremy Maclin announced his retirement after nine seasons.
Maclin, 30, was a blazer from day one after being taken 19th overall in the 2009 draft. In 2014, he hauled in 85 passes for 1,318 yards and 10 touchdowns, making the Pro Bowl game as an alternate. Unfortunately, Maclin’s career has been spiraling downward since he was released by the Chiefs after the 2016 season. In 2017 with Baltimore, he had his worst season (40 catches, 440 yards) and last year he missed the entire campaign while rehabbing a hamstring injury.
All told, Maclin finishes with 514 receptions (135th all-time), 6,835 yards (147th all-time) and 49 touchdowns (tied for 132nd all-time). He was one of the all-time greats at the University of Missouri as a two-time All-American.
RotoRob Tune of the Day
From the amazing 2006 compilation collection, All About Funk, comes the biggest hit from American ’70s soul band, The Jackson Sisters. “I Believe in Miracles” was the band’s first single, released in 1973, and arranged by the great Gene Page, best known for doing the soundtrack for Blacula.
Now it’s your turn. Let us know in the comments below how you think Beckham will fare in Cleveland.
