NFL Officials Trying To Protect New York Giants' Odell Beckham Jr.?

ESPN’s Ed Werder reported that NFL officiating crews have been told to protect New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.. Has this practice made its way on the field?

New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was close to another Josh Norman-style meltdown on Monday Night Football against the Minnesota Vikings. But after his first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Beckham seemed to calm down a bit.

So did Beckham’s production. OBJ finished the game with a career-worst 23 yards receiving on three catches. He didn’t have a single catch in the second half.

After the game, OBJ implied the refs had an implicit bias against him because of his past. “It’s always just my fault. That’s all they look at it as, it’s my fault. Whatever you want to call it, I just have to understand if I sneeze the wrong way it’ll be a flag, it’ll be a fine. If I tie my shoe the wrong way, it might be a fine or a flag. It just is what it is. You have to understand that.”

Refs Helping OBJ?

According to a report from ESPN’s Ed Werder, the opposite is the case. Werder says that “NFL officiating crews have been told to be watchful of opponents baiting the Giants WR into infractions.” Another source told Werder that Beckham “has to be willing to help himself with more appropriate behavior.”

That sentiment is nice to hear if you’re a Giants fan, but how much has it actually been put into practice? Even a casual observer of football would say the officials weren’t looking out for Beckham on Monday night.

Oct 3, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (13) talks with Minnesota Vikings cornerback Xavier Rhodes (29) during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings defeated the Giants 24-10. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

OBJ’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty certainly wasn’t blatant enough to warrant a flag. And as he pointed out after the game, he was given no explanation for the call. Only a couple plays later, Vikings cornerback Xavier Rhodes hit him out of bounds. Beckham may have been looking for contact, but he was a good three feet on the sidelines. No call from the refs “protecting” OBJ on that one.

Beckham plays with passion, but does need to make it easier for the refs to keep the flag in their pocket. As Eli Manning said on Mike Francesa’s radio show on Tuesday, “He’s a competitive and emotional and fiery guy. That’s fine, but you’ve just got to control it and make sure you’re using that the right way to motivate you and encourages your teammates and bring the best out of you, not the worst.”

Winning may cure what ails Beckham. If the Giants can bounce back against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, OBJ might put some of this conversation to rest. He might even have fun playing football again.