‘Never, Ever, Wanted To Leave’

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Odell Beckham Jr. spent the first five seasons of his NFL career with the New York Giants after being selected 12th overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. He quickly became a star, earning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors along with three Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods.

During that stretch, Beckham played in 59 games and topped 1,000 receiving yards in four of those seasons. The only exception was 2017, when he appeared in just four games due to injury. He racked up 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns on 390 catches with the Giants.

Ahead of the 2019 NFL Draft, the Giants traded Beckham—along with pass rusher Olivier Vernon—to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for safety Jabrill Peppers, guard Kevin Zeitler, and the 17th and 95th overall picks. At the time, it was one of the biggest trades in recent NFL history.

Beckham recently revealed he never wanted the move to happen.

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Odell Beckham Jr. Says He Never Wanted to Leave the Giants

Beckham’s rise in New York was meteoric. After just one season in the league, he became the youngest player ever to appear on the cover of the Madden NFL video game. Despite the fame and success, the end of his time with the Giants left him frustrated.

Speaking with CBS Sports during the UEFA Champions League Final, Beckham reflected on his departure.

“For me, it’s like, the New York Giants—like, I never, ever, wanted to leave the New York Giants,” he said. “The reason you heard me talking about what was going on is because I was pissed, because where I come from in college, if we lost one game, our season was over.”

Beckham continued:

“This was an organization I got drafted to—they believed in me. So, if the Giants went and won a Super Bowl, I would be happy, but deep down inside, I wanted to be the one [to bring them a championship]. So it’s definitely… you’ll always hold that. But then someone like me—I went to the [Los Angeles] Rams, won a Super Bowl. But I would still… you just want that.”

While Beckham once appeared to be on a Hall of Fame path, injuries have defined the second half of his career. He helped the Los Angeles Rams win Super Bowl LVI, scoring the game’s first touchdown before tearing his ACL later in the game.

As of now, Beckham remains unsigned heading into the 2025 season.

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