Odell Beckham Jr. had options in NFL free agency, high-profile options. The Ravens would certainly qualify as one of those “high-profile” options, but the list also included rumors of interest from the Cowboys, Bills, Chiefs, Giants, Jets and others, as well. But ultimately, Beckham agreed to a one-year, $15 million deal that includes up to $3 million in (very realistic) incentives with Baltimore.
The deal came as a bit of a surprise, as Beckham himself even said during an interview with the Complex Sports show Volume that he was looking to spend the next "three or four years" with the team he eventually signed with.
Beckham recently discussed his decision and the long grind that came with rehabbing from his second major injury in three years. And as he admitted to The Athletic's Dan Pompei, Beckham was "resistant" about joining the Ravens, citing other teams he had an interest in and the hilarious fact that Baltimore "always whipped my ass."
“If I’m honest, I was resistant,” he says. “There were other places I wanted to go. I wasn’t necessarily a Ravens fan because the Ravens always whipped my ass.”
So what made the difference?
Obviously, the financial upside for Beckham had to be appealing, but as Pompei revealed, the Ravens took the approach that worked for the Rams in their recruitment of the star wide receiver. They made sure Beckham felt wanted by the franchise, which even included team owner Stephen Bisciotti getting involved and calling wideout "multiple times," per the report.
Beckham now enters the 2023 season with star quarterback Lamar Jackson and a revamped wide receiver core that includes himself, rookie Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, Nelson Agholor and Devin Duvernay, to name a few. If Jackson and OBJ can build a rapport quickly, they could create a dangerous pairing while setting the Ravens up as a serious Super Bowl contender this season.
