Odell Beckham's Fantasy Outlook: He Should Be Much Better In 2020
Despite eclipsing 1,000 yards last season, Odell Beckham had a poor year by his standards. Heading into 2020, there are several important reasons to believe he should improve dramatically.
Beckham is currently recovering from surgery he had to repair an issue with his groin. It was discovered last summer, but wasn't treated and he played the entire season with it. It severely limited his ability to practice beyond impacting what he was able to do on the field. Not cleared yet, he should be relatively soon.
The chemistry between Baker Mayfield and Beckham last year was non-existent. It always felt like something was wrong and it wasn't until halfway through the season that Beckham's injury situation was revealed. Drops, poor timing on throws and just a situation that looked downright ugly at times.
The Browns replaced a dysfunctional coaching situation with another first-year head coach in Kevin Stefanski. Stefanski has to prove himself, but the offense he wants to implement has shown to be impressive. His experience in Minnesota and the talent they had on offense provides an interesting blueprint for what might be reasonable to expect from the Browns at the wide receiver position.
The Vikings had Adam Thielen and Stephon Diggs as their featured receivers. Jarvis Landry has similarities to Thielen while Beckham is dynamic like Diggs. Thielen missed time due to injury last season and Diggs was responsible for 30 percent of the team's receiving market share. Beckham generated 23 percent this past season.
The key becomes Baker Mayfield. The percentage of the offense Beckham is likely to remain pretty consistent, around 25 percent of the team's receiving yards, so it's about how much Mayfield can produce. The offense should help, but upgrading their tackles and adding Austin Hooper provide more concrete reasons to buy into the improvement.
If nothing else, a more efficient offense should at least enable Beckham to get more than the four touchdowns he scored in 2019, which is far and away the worst output he's had in his career. Even in 2017 when Beckham appeared in just four games, he scored three touchdowns and has three seasons with at least ten.
