Opinion: Odell Beckham Jr. drama with Baker Mayfield sparks full-blown crisis for Browns

Odell Beckham Jr.’s apparent social media campaign to try to orchestrate his way out of Cleveland before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline put the Browns season in crisis.

Even more so because it failed.

The situation seems reminiscent of 2019, when Beckham gave up on Freddie Kitchens. Little was said in that regard, but Beckham’s body language and facial expressions during his locker room interviews made it clear how he felt about the overmatched coach, who was fired after posting a 6-10 record.

This time, it looks like Beckham has given up on his quarterback.

Going off his in-game actions, especially during Sunday’s 15-10 home loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Beckham doesn’t seem to believe Baker Mayfield is capable of getting him the ball. Beckham doesn't appear willing to give Mayfield a pass for playing with a torn labrum and fractured humerus in his left shoulder.

Receiver Beckham, who turns 29 Friday, has to believe there’s one more big contract out there for him. But after undergoing three surgeries in the past four years, he hasn’t put his body on the line to catch Mayfield’s consistently high balls. That’s likely because the 6-foot-1 Mayfield can’t see downfield, especially as the Browns cut down on his bootlegs and scrambles to protect his injured shoulder.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski has lost his play-calling mojo, and Mayfield’s limitations are likely a huge part of that.

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Mayfield’s labrum is not going to heal itself. With the Browns failing to move Beckham at the deadline, it is on Stefanski to weather the storm.

Beckham is still owed $8.33 million for the final nine games and Browns General Manager Andrew Berry wouldn’t pay another NFL team to take Beckham off his hands. This isn’t the NBA, where the Cavaliers gave J.R. Smith and Andre Drummond millions to leave the team and sit out while still under contract.

But neither Beckham nor Jarvis Landry has any guaranteed money remaining on their contracts after this season. The Browns seem primed for a 2022 shakeup at receiver, with second-year man Donovan Peoples-Jones and perhaps forgotten rookie speedster Anthony Schwartz leading the way.

With the Browns keeping Beckham, it seems like a slam dunk that they will release him in the offseason. But that doesn’t help Stefanski now.

A three-time Pro Bowler whose one-handed catch in November, 2014, for the New York Giants against the Dallas Cowboys, inspired a generation, Beckham is respected by his teammates, especially by the young Browns. Rookie cornerback Greg Newsome II said of Beckham Monday, “Odell’s still one of the best receivers in the league. Just because he doesn’t have as many catches or whatever, he’s still one of the greatest talents in the league. He’ll definitely get it going.”

Beckham’s actions the past few days sent the wrong message to the impressionable Browns, and Stefanski must make that clear, likely behind closed doors.

On Sunday, when Mayfield ran out of bounds to pick up a first down in the fourth quarter and came up with a fist pump, a television clip showed that Beckham didn’t acknowledge Mayfield on the sideline. Beckham didn’t go high and sell out for a Mayfield pass to the Pittsburgh 7-yard-line with 2:52 remaining. Beckham was not among the Browns who celebrated D’Ernest Johnson’s touchdown run in the third quarter, trotting to the bench and bypassing the end zone party.

Bringing in Beckham wasn’t this regime’s doing, it was the blockbuster move of former General Manager John Dorsey, fired with Kitchens in 2019. Trading for Beckham was another example of an issue that bedevils the league — there are always those who believe they are smart enough to fix another team’s problem.

Fueled by Beckham’s three-touchdown day at Dallas in 2020, there was a feeling that the Browns need Beckham to win in the playoffs. There was the feel-good reunion of Beckham and Landry, teammates at Louisiana State and friends since they were 16.

But it seems clear that Beckham and Mayfield are a bad fit. It looks like Beckham basically demanded to be traded with his #FreeOBJ campaign. It included an Instagram video, posted by his father, showing examples of when he’s been open. Beckham appeared to enlist the support of friend LeBron James on Twitter.

All this makes it appear that Beckham is not all-in on Mayfield or the Browns. While he can disavow his father's video, Beckham could prove to be the kind of locker room poison that can ruin what Stefanski and Berry are building.

It is Stefanski’s job to keep the team together. For a few more months, he must manage two larger-than-life personalities in Beckham and Mayfield and try to get the Browns to the playoffs, when Beckham may turn it on in the national spotlight.

Stefanski must convince Beckham that he’s damaging his future prospects, both in terms of his next team and his next contract, with his one-handed waves at Mayfield balls above his head. Beckham’s injury history alone will impact his financial windfall.

As reigning NFL Coach of the Year Stefanski tries to save a season marred by major injuries, the burden falls on him. It will be a greater test than watching an AFC wild-card victory from his basement.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Odell Beckham Jr. drama becomes full-blown crisis for Cleveland Browns