Odell Beckham Injury: Updates on Giants Star's Back and Recovery

Odell Beckham's rookie season with the New York Giants appears as though it could be defined by injuries, as the first-year wide receiver is on the shelf for the second time in 2014 in Week 12 against the Dallas Cowboys. 

The Giants provided the news:

Although he would only miss a handful of plays and return later in the fourth quarter according to ESPN's Dan Graziano: 

Beckham finished the game with 10 catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns in the Giants' 31-28 loss. 

He missed the first four games of the season due to a hamstring injury. The former LSU star made his presence felt immediately after returning, scoring a touchdown in his first game against Atlanta. 

The Giants had high expectations for Beckham, especially in light of Victor Cruz's season-ending injury suffered against Philadelphia. He seemed to relish the challenge of becoming Eli Manning's go-to guy, while admitting the difficult task of replacing one of the NFL's best receivers, via Ebenezer Samuel of The New York Daily News:

"

I definitely feel more comfortable with where I’m at now, as far as the playbook and getting my body underneath me. But it’s tough to fulfill that role he (Cruz) played. Not just on the field but off the field, his presence. It’s one of those things as sad as is it it’s the nature of the game. And we’ve got to move forward.

"

There were some growing pains for Beckham, as there are for any rookie. He was essentially a non-factor in that game against the Eagles when Cruz got hurt, though no one on New York's offense played well that night. 

Everyone loved Beckham coming out of the draft. The Giants grabbed him with the 12th overall pick. Chris B. Brown of Smart Football continued to rave about the rookie's upside while acknowledging there's a lot to work on:

Rueben Randle and Preston Parker get elevated up the depth chart now. Randle has been solid this season, though he's not the kind of player who will break big plays in this offense that uses short passes.

Parker doesn't seem to have the full trust of head coach Tom Coughlin, via Ralph Vacchiano of The New York Daily News:

Beckham has become essential to this offense and Giants' fans let out a collective sigh of relief when he returned to the game. 

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