Berea, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – It didn’t take long for Odell Beckham Jr. to make his presence felt Tuesday.
And not because it was just his second official practice with the Browns – the first in front of reporters – either.
Beckham’s strong hands and quick feet were as flashy as his ‘OBJ’ embossed cleats and custom socks during individual, group, seven-on-seven and team drills Tuesday afternoon.
“Odell looked good,” head coach Freddie Kitchens said with a chuckle following practice Tuesday.
In a seven-on-seven red zone drill, it took Beckham three to four steps after faking a move to the right before he cut in on a post route to separate from cornerback T.J. Carrie. He then reached up to haul in a dart from Baker Mayfield for a touchdown.
Beckham’s patented one-handed catch, now immortalized as the hood ornament on his new Rolls Royce, made its debut in front of the cameras as well during individual/positional drills.
“Odell is here to make plays. He is capable of doing it. Baker is here to make plays,” Kitchens said. “Everybody we have here is here to make plays. I expect those guys to make plays. Players make plays, and they are definitely players.”
All eyes were on No. 13 because he skipped the voluntary portion of the offseason that included the training program and OTAs with the exceptions of an appearance on April 1 and May 14.
Kitchens also tried to put to rest any perceived frustration or criticism with Beckham expressed last Thursday when the OTAs wrapped up.
“[OTAs were] voluntary guys – it’s voluntary. You guys take comments that I made last week and turned it into something other than what the comment actually meant,” Kitchens said. “I was looking forward to seeing Odell. I truly was. I’m not going to bull [crap] you. I really was. He missed a lot – he understands that – but he did not miss as much as you really think because he has been studying every night just like these other guys; he just had not been here. Alright?
“He felt it was more compatible for his body to get in good shape and be at the best that he can be when he got here. Alright? Would I have like him here? Yes. No doubt about it. I want everybody here, but he does not have to be here. It is voluntary.”
Beckham, who is scheduled to speak on Wednesday for the first time since he was introduced on April 1, certainly didn’t look rusty that’s for sure.
Part of that could’ve been because receiver Jarvis Landry kept in touch with the three-time Pro Bowler over the last two months while the offense was being installed.
“The relationship has always been there and he's been communicating back and forth with myself, coaches, Baker, so the communication part is definitely there and, again, it's good to have him back in the building and to have the receiver room feeling as competitive as it is,” Landry said.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield, who has had to work without his top two targets for most of the spring, was glad to see Beckham but stopped short of criticizing his absence.
“A professional’s going to be a professional,” Mayfield said. “He’s going to train how he wants to. That’s an elite athlete. It’s how he does his stuff, and you’ve got to believe and trust in that. He’s going to be here when he needs to.”
Their chemistry looked like it still needs work at times during practice, specifically when Mayfield overthrew him on a deep corner ball. But the quarterback isn’t concerned, especially because they plan to get together before training camp for workouts.
“It’s obviously still early in the process, but we’re going to kick it into a little overdrive here pretty soon,” Mayfield said. “Just keep building that. We don’t have to be perfect right now, but we’re building for that. Still a long way away from Game 1, but we’ve got to be ready for that.”
