While Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis implores Odell Beckham Jr. to find a power higher than new Giants coach Pat Shurmur and Ereck Flowers looks to find his way to the team's offseason conditioning program, the guy who's caught in the middle of all this is Eli Manning.
He's the one who should really be sending a prayer or two skyward. Unless his star wide receiver and reluctant new right tackle find a proper path quickly, the quarterback or his successor is going to be looking at another long, miserable season.
MORE: Report: Teams No Longer Believe Giants Will Trade Beckham
Beckham currently has a theological battle going with Lewis, the former Baltimore Ravens terror who apparently has found a better, holier way since his 2000 conviction for obstructing the investigation of a double murder he witnessed in the wee morning hours after Super Bowl XXXIV in Atlanta.
Having taken on Beckham as an unofficial spiritual project after fellow formerly troubled great Cris Carter failed in counseling the wide receiver, Lewis went on a radio show to explain how Beckham needed to move away from his fast, celebrity friends and find the discipline only the supreme being can provide.
And do it quickly.
Beckham responded by posting an Instagram message that, in essence, proclaimed he has all the religion he needs right now, thank you.
The foundation was installed at birth... we will survive and prevail... ALWAYS. God willing...
A post shared by Odell Beckham Jr (@obj) on
At least Beckham reported for the first day of the offseason training program, which is more than the 23-year-old Flowers did. Less than a month after general manager Dave Gettleman signed Patriots left tackle Nate Solder as a gigantic upgrade to Flowers' turnstile style, that spot's former occupant decided he had better things to do than report for a voluntary conditioning program.
This is a former first-round tackle who now must not only transition to the opposite side but also learn a new offensive system during his final contract season. To not show up -- and to Instagram a since-deleted photo of a practice field far from the Giants' East Rutherford training facility -- doesn't speak well of his current mindset.
Nor does a recent history that saw him beg out of the 2017 finale because of a sore ankle. That alone caused people to question his commitment to the team. That his friend and linemate Bobby Hart, who Gettleman couldn't get rid of fast enough, may have influenced his decision was also not encouraging.
Oh, yeah. He was the only key player to sit out Shurmur's introductory session.
Not the best way to score points with the new guy, regardless of the reason.
Whether the ultimate team-first quarterback wants to admit it or not, Manning is caught in the middle of all this.
If rumors about the Giants unloading Beckham for draft picks comes to fruition because his demands for a big-bucks contract extension run counter to his free-wheeling, on-and-off-field conduct, Manning will have to muddle along without one of the NFL's most transformational wide receivers.
If he goes, Manning's two best receiving options become Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram. They're both fine pass-catchers. But neither is Beckham.
Fortunately for Manning, an ESPN reported Wednesday said teams around the NFL no longer believe Beckham is on the trading block.
And if Flowers' absence signals the beginning of a real attitude problem, the upgraded security the acquisition of Solder represents could disintegrate from the opposite end.
While Lewis continues to try to Bible-thump his way into Beckham's restless soul and Flowers continues what appears more and more like a vain search for common sense, Manning faces the biggest issues.
He should be sending up prayers every night that both Beckham and Flowers wise up.
The sooner the better.
Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
