Cowboys skip Beckham’s workout; does it mean anything?
Odell Beckham Jr. was on a football field once again, running routes and catching passes for an assembled collection of 12 NFL team scouts and representatives as the free agent wide receiver looks to sign with a new squad following his 13-month recovery from ACL surgery.
But despite the very public courting that went nowhere between the two sides last fall, the Cowboys were not in attendance at an Arizona Sun Devils’ practice field Friday.
According to CBS Sports, the Panthers, Patriots, Cardinals, 49ers, Bills, Chiefs, Vikings, Ravens, and Jets were present at Beckham’s private workout, along with all three of Beckham’s previous teams: the Giants, Browns, and Rams.
The Cowboys’ absence leaves fans to wonder if the team has decided against pursuing the three-time Pro Bowler whose last game appearance was Super Bowl LVI with the Rams.
Everybody almost ran out after this one… 🤯🤯🤯 @obj pic.twitter.com/Lya6wg7wuN
— Prince Amukamara (@PrinceAmukamara) March 11, 2023
The Cowboys met with Beckham in December, as did the Giants, and Bills. He did not work out for teams at that time.
Several Cowboys players made a very public play for Beckham to join the team leading up to and then during a two-day visit. The Dallas front office had suggested that they were interested in signing him to help the team’s air attack during the regular season but ultimately chose not to add him to the roster and signed T.Y. Hilton instead.
The Dallas Morning News reported this past week that a person close to the situation claimed the Cowboys “would be comfortable” signing Beckham “if the money and health were right.”
Reports from Friday’s workout state that Beckham showed great hands and looked “noticeably muscular.” He still looks like a receiver who can help a receiver-needy offense, even if he may have lost a slight step at 30 years old and with multiple knee injuries in his past.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones hinted that he’s done his own research on the talented wide receiver, telling the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he had reached out to Beckham’s mother, and that the pair had “a very impressive conversation.”
Maybe the club has elected to go a different route, perhaps looking at another free agent like the just-released Adam Thielen or a trade target such as DeAndre Hopkins.
Or maybe that chat was enough to convince the Cowboys that a trip to the desert wasn’t necessary.
