UPDATE (8:24 P.M. ET): The Browns and Odell Beckham Jr. have agreed on a contract restructure that will result in him being placed on waivers Monday, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Beckham will be due $7.25 million for the rest of this season with the final two years of his deal being terminated.
ORIGINAL STORY: Bill Belichick on Friday got as close as he probably will get to talking about whether the New England Patriots could pursue Odell Beckham Jr.
The Cleveland Browns released Beckham on Friday morning, marking a dramatic end to a relationship that never quite worked out. Beckham now is subject to waivers — the Patriots currently are 15th in the NFL waiver order — and will become a free agent Monday if he goes unclaimed. His reported contract restructure seemingly increases the chances of the 29-year-old being claimed by one of the NFL’s 32 teams.
NFL insider Jeremy Fowler identified the Patriots as a “sleeper” landing spot for Beckham, and Patriots fans long have coveted the star receiver. But is New England interested?
During his Friday morning news conference, Belichick more-or-less was asked about the possibility of pursuing a player like Beckham.
Check out this exchange:
Reporter: “I’ll ask you this in the general sense. I know at times you’ve said it’s tough to bring players in halfway through the season. But, if a top-caliber player became available, how much would you pay attention to that and look into possibly bringing him if it helps your team?”
Belichick: “We’ve done that before,” Belichick said. “Brought in (Aqib) Talib in the middle of the season. You’d have to evaluate any situation. I don’t know any specifics to talk about, so, at this point, there’s nothing to really talk about. We’d do anything we could to help our football team. We brought in James Harrison with one game to go in the season.”
Make of that what you will.
Beckham never was able to form a strong connection with Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. In two-plus seasons in Cleveland, the former New York Giant racked up 114 catches for 1,586 yards and seven touchdowns in 29 games.
Beckham, who tore his ACL last season, has 17 catches for 232 yards and zero touchdowns in six games this season.
