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Jordan Raanan
Multiple Authors
Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. made the New York Giants‘ initial 53-man roster after a season out of the NFL, the team announced Sunday.
Beckham was signed by the Giants this spring. Head coach John Harbaugh said the former Pro Bowl receiver who was drafted by New York in 2014 would not be guaranteed a roster spot. He had to earn it.
That is what Beckham did this summer, when he didn’t miss a practice and proved consistently he could still get open. The 33-year-old receiver last played for the Miami Dolphins during the 2024 season.
Beckham was the 12th pick in the 2014 NFL draft out of LSU. He instantly became one of the league’s most electric players and was tracking to be an all-time great after his first three professional seasons. But injuries and controversies sent Beckham’s career off track, and he was traded by the Giants to the Cleveland Browns in 2018.
Eight years later, he’s on New York’s roster, preparing to face the Dallas Cowboys in the season opener Sept. 13.
“It would mean everything to me if I made it,” Beckham said about the prospects of making the team after the preseason finale Friday night.
He added: “Seeing my [4-year-old] son at the game yelling and just looking at me. He told one of his friends, ‘People always want to take a picture with my dad. He must be the best.’ It just made me laugh because I want to show him, lead the way. I want to be a good example for him. Be a good man. I love him so much.”
Beckham had seven catches for 76 yards this preseason. His chances of making the roster increased when the Giants lost wide receiver Calvin Austin III for the season last week because of a torn ACL.
It wouldn’t have mattered if Beckham hadn’t gotten progressively better throughout the spring and summer. Harbaugh said last week was Beckham’s best week of camp.
“Yes, he has done enough to make an NFL roster, for sure,” Harbaugh said Friday night. “He’s played well. He’s gotten better as camp’s gone along. He deserves credit for that. He’s done a really good job with it.”
Meanwhile, four former Giants draft picks were among the cuts, including Evan Neal. The offensive lineman was drafted with the seventh pick in the 2022 NFL draft out of Alabama. His disappointing Giants career will end with 29 games and 27 starts. Neal was given a “clean slate” by Harbaugh but never seemed to gain traction and spent a majority of the summer working with the third team.
Wide receiver Jalin Hyatt (third round 2023), linebacker Darius Muasau (sixth round 2024) and running back Eric Gray (fifth round 2023) were also among the Giants’ final cuts. All seven Giants draft picks this year made the 53-man roster, including all three sixth-round selections.
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