Odell Beckham Jr. returns from his one-game suspension in the New York Giants' season finale versus the Philadelphia Eagles. While the second-year receiver said he's learned a valuable lesson, he won't change how he plays.
"I don't think anything's going to change except learning from this experience," Beckham said Wednesday, via ESPN.com. "I don't think I'm going to play with any less intensity. I don't think I'm going to play with any less emotion."
Beckham incurred three personal foul penalties for aggressive and violent on-field actions in a Week 15 loss to the Carolina Panthers. We've elaborated in this space how OBJ got the better of corner Josh Norman between the whistles. However, the Panthers got in Beckham's head, leading to several post-play battles, including a helmet-to-helmet blow from Beckham that helped lead to the suspension.
When asked if he'd seen video of his behavior he replied he had and said: "I take responsibility for my actions, I learn from it, and it's all good."
It was clear from the debacle that took place in Minnesota sans Beckham that the wideout is the team's MVP. He's the only offensive player who can win or stress a defense. Beckham said it bothered him that his actions hurt his team and were a poor example for young Giants fans.
"It's just unfortunate," Beckham said. "You never want to do that on the field. To be caught up in such a moment, you don't want to put the team in that situation and you don't want to show that to kids. I wasn't controlling myself and I ended up hurting my team. It's poor sportsmanship and not something you want to put on film. Everything is under your control and ultimately it's up to you. You can't do that type of stuff."