New York Giants were the ones who gave Odell Beckham Jr. the big break into the NFL. They drafted him as the 12th overall pick, and he rose to fame for his performances with the franchise in the initial years. Now, after leaving the Giants in 2019, Beckham is back in New York and has donned the role of a senior leader to the young guys on the team. Amid that, NFL analyst Peter Schrager remains skeptical about Beckham’s potential output in the 2026 season.
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“Now you look at that wide receiver room. This isn’t some novelty act or some feel-good story so they could sell a couple jerseys,” Schrager said on The Pat McAfee Show. “They need him to be good like he needs to perform, and the fact that he might end up being the three, maybe the two at some point. Makes me a little concerned about the wide receiver room.
“But let’s see if he can be that guy because… I’ll tell you in the preseason and training camp, one of the best stories was Malachi Fields, and I’m not sure they’re ready to put him at that number two spot just yet.”
The concerns around Odell Beckham Jr.’s performance are not without reason. The last time he played an entire regular season was in 2019 when he represented the Cleveland Browns. Even though Beckham won Super Bowl LVI with the LA Rams, the 33-year-old WR has not crossed the 600-receiving-yard mark since the 2019 season.
During the 2025 season, while representing the Miami Dolphins, Beckham even suffered a six-game suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. So, a lot of concerns around the veteran playmaker. Yet, Schrager also praised one particular aspect of Beckham this offseason.
“All I heard about was how low maintenance and amazing leadership that Odell Beckham showed in 14 days at the Greenbrier with those young guys and kind of be that senior leader,” Schrager added. “And I’ll tell you, I’ve been around Odell. He is a superstar like no other in New York City. Even in 2026, he can go to Europe, and there are 100 people who are going to follow him and take paparazzi shots for him.
Odell Beckham Jr. arguably stands as one of the most popular NFL stars. His social media follower count (16.5M) even topples the three-time Super Bowl winners Travis Kelce (7.7M) and Patrick Mahomes’ (6.4M) numbers.
Beckham enjoys popularity due to his viral in-game moments, alongside his frequent collaborations with List-A celebrities. Remember the wide receiver’s gravity-defying, one-handed touchdown grab against the Dallas Cowboys during his rookie 2014 season? Or his on-screen appearance with Drake in the official 2020 music video for the hit song “Laugh Now Cry Later” (featuring Lil Durk)?
Yet, Beckham has a grounded/humble demeanor, one that caught the attention of NFL analyst Peter Schrager. But the actual eyes will be on his performance on the gridiron. As things stand, Giants HC John Harbaugh praised the 33-year-old WR for making it to the final 53-man roster for the 2026 season.
“He has done enough to make an NFL roster, for sure,” Harbaugh said. “He’s played well, he’s gotten better as camp’s gone along, he deserves credit for that, and he’s done a really good job with it.”
Apart from Odell Beckham Jr., the New York Giants have Malik Nabers, Darnell Mooney, Darius Slayton, and Malachi Fields on the final roster. While Peter Schrager raises doubts about Beckham, it will be interesting to see what WR combination HC Harbaugh feels is best for the team.