The Buffalo Bills were called for 17 penalties on Sunday in a sloppy loss to the Giants, including an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by linebacker Preston Brown for mixing it up with Odell Beckham.
Brown says he was only responding to an unwarranted punch from Beckham, while other Bills defenders called Beckham a "prima donna" and a "golden boy," according to Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News.
"I don't know what's up with him," Bills cornerback Stephon Gilmore said. "He acts like ... you're supposed to let him catch the ball. He's weird. He gets mad when you play physical with him. He's weird."
Gilmore said that Beckham didn't handle physical play very well. That showed up in his actions and his lack of production; Beckham was held to 38 yards.
"He's different," Gilmore said. "It's kind of like you're playing your little brother and he gets mad at you for being too physical with him -- throwing a tantrum. I'm like, 'Man, we're playing football. It's a physical game.' ... He's a prima donna. He feels like he's on top of the world and nobodys supposed to do anything to him."
Brown said he tried to play peacemaker after one play, and Beckham threw a punch at him. At that point, Brown retaliated and was penalized. Dunne writes that Beckham also punched safety Duke Williams later in the game. Williams didn't retaliate.
"A guy like that, you expect him to be a stand-up guy but I guess it is a part of his game," Williams said. "He likes to throw cheap shots here and there and gets away with it. I guess it's his thing. ... Right in front of the referee and he threw a jab at me and ran behind his teammates. He ran away. I'm just like, 'Wow. That's crazy.' "
Gilmore said that the world doesn't know "what type of player" Beckham really is, saying he's only "alright" as a receiver. (Chris Wesseling would disagree.)
"I don't really watch TV and listen to the hype. I study guys on the film and then I judge him," Gilmore said. "He's not Sammy Watkins. He has good hands, he can catch. He's good but he's not what people think after that one catch."
