It’s apparently not just fans, paparazzi and burned defenders who know what it’s like to follow Odell Beckham.
One NFL team hired a private investigator to keep an eye on Beckham this spring when the Giants suggested they were open to listening to trade offers on their mercurial wide receiver, according to an ESPN feature on Beckham’s journey to his record payday. On Monday, the Giants made him the highest-paid receiver in the league with a five-year extension worth $95 million with $65 million guaranteed.
Beckham’s future looked much murkier five months ago when Giants co-owner John Mara said “nobody is untouchable” on the current roster after a miserable 3-13 season. Beckham didn’t help his own case when a video showing him in bed with a model and what appeared to be a blunt went viral in March.
The scene was suspicious enough that one team reportedly wanted to do a background check on Beckham, thorough enough to make sure he wasn’t using illegal drugs. The 25-year-old was recovering from surgery at the time after fracturing his left ankle during a Week 5 game last season.
The investigator’s dig didn’t uncover anything alarming, according to ESPN. Then the team that was said to be most interested in Beckham, the Rams, appeared to drop out of the market after acquiring receiver Brandin Cooks and a fourth-round draft pick from the Patriots. It left Beckham seemingly destined to stay with Big Blue. That came to booming fruition two weeks before the Giants’ season opener, with a healthy Beckham now happily paid and ready to face the Jaguars at home Sept. 9.
Source: Read Full Article