Answering the Complicated Odell Beckham Question
Ever since Odell Beckham tore his ACL against the Cincinnati Bengals, the season has been a referendum on his value to the Browns. Before the injury, the passing game was clunky, inconsistent. Since the injury, Mayfield has looked the part of a franchise quarterback and the passing game has been dynamic and at times unstoppable, leaving many to conclude that Beckham was the problem when it's a far more complicated topic.
The issue with this assumption is it doesn't account for Mayfield's own development within Kevin Stefanski's offense independent of Beckham. Mayfield has made leaps and bounds in areas of the game that have nothing to do with his receivers, largely a function of establishing comfort within the scheme - Knowing what to expect from his side of the ball and being able to use all of his spare energy on accounting for what the defense is doing.
Just in terms of what Mayfield was seeing from defenses, where his eyes are and how he was manipulating defenders is night and day from the earlier part of the season. In other words, if Beckham were healthy, there's every reason to believe he would be benefiting as much as every other weapon in this offense is currently.
Maybe it wouldn't be as good with Beckham as it is without him, but it also might be better. For all the reasons it's incredibly disappointing that Beckham got hurt, it has provided perspective for Beckham, Mayfield and the Browns an organization.
Beckham wants to win. He's also been totally unwavering in his belief that he's the key to achieving it. He's not selfish, upset when other players get the ball, but he is devout when it comes to believing in himself and his ability to take over the game, which has manifested itself occasionally in negative ways.
As a result, he is constantly trying to lobby for the ball. In both 2019 and early in 2020, this was to the Browns detriment as Mayfield would defer to him, trying to get him the ball when he shouldn't, resulting in turnovers, countless missed opportunities and a stalling of the offense.
Perhaps as Beckham rehabs his knee, he's watching the Browns and thinking about what could be if he was healthy. That he needs to trust in what the coaching staff is doing, trust in Mayfield to take care of the offense and get him the ball when he should as on Beckham's demanding schedule.
After all, success on offense breeds opportunity for everyone on that side of the ball. The more plays a team runs, the more times a player can get the ball.
There's also every reason to believe that even if Beckham is a perfectly rational person outside of games, that when the game is going and tensions are high, he will default to demanding Mayfield get him the football.
Mayfield is no fool. He sees what everyone else sees and how smoothly the offense can run in its current form. Undoubtedly, he remembers what the offense looked like before when he deferred to Beckham. He has to make the decision to simply ignore the noise and do what's best for the offense.
The other consideration when it comes to Beckham is from the coaching staff. So long as Stefanski is happy with Beckham's execution within his offense, he can offer significant value, assuming he achieves full recovery from his knee injury.
Some will criticize the way Beckham runs routes and how unorthodox his approach can be. To this point, coaches haven't seen this as an issue and Chad O'Shea, the team's wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator is no shrinking violet. He's a demanding coach that won't hesitate to deal with something he doesn't like, which is part of the reason he was hired. They may embrace Beckham's approach, even encourage it.
Assuming Beckham's knee fully recovers, he is just a remarkable athlete and the possibilities continue to be endless, so long they can achieve the right balance with Mayfield.
The Browns don't have anyone with his skill set. On some level, no one does, but the Browns don't have a genuine deep threat. Their best right now are Rashard Higgins and Donovan Peoples-Jones, neither of which offers tremendous straight line speed. Beckham still has the ability to force the defense to cover more of the field, which opens up other options.
The Browns would benefit from adding another deep threat to create space for when Beckham works underneath routes and has opportunities to create with the ball in his hands, but moving on from him would take them down to zero.
The Browns have so many players that win in short and intermediate levels of the field that it can be redundant and is actually hurting some of their receivers in this offense. Austin Hooper is one that stands out in this scenario.
Part of the reason Hooper was so productive with the Atlanta Falcons is because they had players creating space like Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley down the field, allowing him to thrive against fewer defenders in that intermediate area. Jarvis Landry, Higgins, Harrison Bryant are all players that win in that area of the field, which can produce a clogging effect. Defenses are going where the receivers are going to be.
With Beckham, it theoretically provides a more conducive environment in which Hooper can thrive at that area of the field by creating more space overall.
To Beckham's credit, for as strange as his tenure has been with the Browns, he has flashed what he's capable, providing the play that sealed the win against the Dallas Cowboys as an example. The Browns have to decide if it's enough to invest the time and energy, considering what they've been able to do without him.
The overall trend of Beckham's career is concerning over the past four seasons, save for 2018 which was quite good. Nevertheless, he is still 28 years old and unless the Browns can trade him, likely getting little if anything in return, they are incentivized to try to make it work.
These factors are important when it comes on determining their plan when it comes to Beckham's future in Cleveland, but none of them have anything to do with a perceived negative impact on the passing game.
Beyond the critical component of how Mayfield deals with Beckham's presence in the huddle, it's entirely about Beckham; his skill set and what he offers the Browns offense going forward. And as forgettable as his two seasons with the Browns have been, he does bear serious consideration when it comes to the Browns in 2021, perhaps even over other receiving options with this team.
Instead of trying to be a superstar carrying this offense, Beckham now can be a great component within an offense that has already proven successful, taking them to another level, which might be the change that the Browns need.
