Although he is currently a free agent, Odell Beckham Jr. was treated like a Dallas Cowboys superstar Monday night. About 15 minutes after the Dallas Mavericks tipped off against the visiting Phoenix Suns at the American Airlines Center, a garage door opened to the loading dock where Mavericks players park.
A small group walked in, led by Beckham and Cowboys superstar defenders Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs.
Odell Beckham Jr., Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs arriving at the Mavericks game pic.twitter.com/tmvez5Euuc
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) December 6, 2022
This was all part of his first day visiting the Cowboys. Earlier in the day, Beckham met with the team’s medical staff at The Star. He was then scheduled to spend time with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, executive vice president Stephen Jones, head coach Mike McCarthy, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and others.
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“It’ll be good to go through the process,” Moore said before meeting with Beckham. “Odell’s obviously had a ton of success in this league. From my vantage point, when you get a chance to watch the film, that’s the side of it that I can be a part of. He’s had a ton of success and we respect the heck out of what he’s done in three different spots now.”
Beckham declined to give much detail of how his visit was going as he walked with Parsons and Diggs to find their courtside seats.
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“Just went and grabbed some food,” he responded. “That’s all. Everything is nice. I plead the fifth on everything else.”
Beckham was later asked by an ESPN reporter about the Cowboys’ chances of signing him.
“It’s a good possibility,” he said with a smile.
During the third quarter, as the Mavericks were well on their way to a 130-111 victory, the AAC big screen showed Beckham, Diggs and Parsons sitting next to the Suns’ bench in seats that are owned by the Jones family. The crowd responded with a roaring O-B-J chant. Diggs encouraged the fans as he started chanting too.
Dallas fans chanting O-B-J for Odell Beckham Jr. pic.twitter.com/3oD25TuVzu
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) December 6, 2022
Former Cowboys star wide receiver Dez Bryant was also in attendance, sitting near Cowboys rookie tight ends Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot on the opposite side of the floor from Beckham.
The crowd erupted into another O-B-J chant in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. Beckham then spoke briefly with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban before eventually exiting the building.
Mark Cuban meeting with Odell Beckham Jr. pic.twitter.com/tCtvuR2FN8
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) December 6, 2022
Beckham, who met with the New York Giants and Buffalo Bills late last week, is expected to meet with Cowboys QB Dak Prescott and the team’s leadership group on Tuesday. If everything checks out with the health of Beckham’s surgically-repaired knee, a deal could come together in the next couple of days.
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The Cowboys continue to be the favorites to land the 30-year-old, but they need to know that he can contribute this season. Beckham reportedly did not work out for the Giants or Bills. The Cowboys were hoping he would work out for them. If they see enough to think he could contribute in some portion of their regular season and the playoffs, the next part would be the financial side. Beckham is looking for a multiyear deal. The Cowboys should be fine with that, as long as it doesn’t interfere with their ability to re-sign players like Diggs, Parsons and WR CeeDee Lamb, who are all playing on their rookie contracts.
Why does Jerry Jones think Dallas is the best spot for Beckham?
“Well, I think we’ve got a quarterback that fits,” Jones said Sunday night. “Really could make some music with (Prescott). I think we’ve got an offensive line that would give the quarterback time to make some music with him. And then I think we’ve got seriously alternative places for the quarterback to (throw the ball) that he would help open it up (and) that would give us more offense. So if his skills are skills that we’ve come to associate with his name, if he’s got some of that, that would help us. … There’s no question in my mind that, under the right circumstances, he can help us.”
If Beckham doesn’t work out for the team, what would make Jones feel comfortable enough to sign him?
“I’ll know it when I feel it,” Jones said. “I’ll know it. I’ll know it. It really will come down to something like that. I don’t know how to explain that, and I’ve missed with that feeling before. But it’s also worked. I think the promise of it might work. In other words, the willingness to take the risk can be worth the money. Or it can be worth the commitment.
“There’s going to have to be, on everybody’s part here, some element of understanding that we don’t know what might happen and obviously we shouldn’t do anything that would really knock a hole in our ship. We should not do that. He certainly shouldn’t knock a hole in his ship, either.
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“I want this to work. I want it to work. But that means I’m going to be trying to make it work. So I’m going to be looking for reasons to do (it), not reasons not to do (it).
“He’s the real deal and I think he’s very capable of having a lot more career in the NFL.”
(Photo, from left, Micah Parsons, Trevon Diggs, Odell Beckham Jr.: Richard Rodriguez / Getty Images)
