Dave Gettleman Says Odell Beckham Jr. Trade Was in Giants' Best Interest

Timothy Rapp @@TRappaRTFeatured ColumnistMarch 18, 2019

New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham gestures prior to an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2018, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

Odell Beckham Jr. is one of the most talented wide receivers and dynamic playmakers in the NFL, but New York Giants general manager Dave Gettleman is maintaining that moving on from him was in the team's "best interest," per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post:

Paul Schwartz @NYPost_Schwartz
Gettleman: Odell trade is in best interest of Giants. "Odell is a tremendous talent, making him a tremendous asset.''

Paul Schwartz @NYPost_Schwartz
Gettleman says Giants "were not actively shopping'' Beckham and in order to make a deal "the other team was going to have to knock it out of the park.''

Paul Schwartz @NYPost_Schwartz
Gettleman: This gives us the ability to address multiple positions.

As for the many people questioning why the Giants would trade such an excellent player, Gettleman said Monday: "It's not my responsibility to tell you guys what I'm doing."

He added: "Trust me, we got a plan. You got to be patient."

The Giants received 2019 first- and third-round picks from the Browns, along with safety Jabrill Peppers, in exchange for Beckham.

It was a modest return for a 26-year-old superstar who has registered 390 receptions for 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns in 59 games.

But according to a report from Peter King of Pro Football Talk, the Giants were simply ready to move on from Beckham:

"The Giants had this attitude about Odell Beckham entering last week: 'As long as he's ours, he's ours. If we get a good to very good offer for him, we'll trade him. If not, we'll cope with him and continue to wait for the right offer, and if he's on the team, we'll make it work.' Not the best way to proceed, but that was their reality. From the Giants' point of view, the reality was his talent made him un-cuttable, but the energy it took to corral his greatness was something they would have preferred to live without."

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And Peppers was reportedly a sticking point in the negotiations. Per King, "my understanding is Gettleman made it clear that the trade would not get done without Peppers being in it."

That makes a certain amount of sense, as the Giants lost Landon Collins in free agency to Washington. Of course, the Giants had the option of using the franchise tag on Collins to keep him for another season, but they abstained and saw him sign with a divisional rival.

It's been a bizarre, and busy, offseason for the Giants, who also traded edge-rusher Olivier Vernon to the Browns for guard Kevin Zeitler. And through it all, the team is seemingly sticking with veteran quarterback Eli Manning, who struggled in 2018.

Gettleman has his vision for the Giants, one that started to truly take shape in 2019. If the Giants are a five-win team again in 2019, however, Gettleman is going to face immense scrutiny.