Tom Coughlin’s frustration with the state of Odell Beckham Jr.’s ailing hamstring boiled over Monday — directly at the media.
While revealing the Giants’ first-round pick could miss two or three more weeks, Coughlin chided reporters for making Beckham’s status a daily topic and suggested the media should “encourage” him instead.
Beckham has appeared in no games and practiced only a handful of times since being drafted in May, and Coughlin is already ruling out the LSU wide receiver for Monday’s season opener in Detroit.
“Let’s just let this kid get better, OK?” Coughlin said Monday morning after the Giants’ first practice since putting together their 53-man regular-season roster. “Everybody settle down and let the kid get better.
“I went to him yesterday and said, ‘Let’s just not have any more setbacks.’ Whatever it takes to get over this, let’s do this,” Coughlin added. “Let’s encourage him. Let’s not make him feel like he’s an outsider, and let’s get on with it. But to talk about him every day? I’ll let you know when he’s ready to do something. I’ll let you know.”
Coughlin bluntly admitted Beckham “is not ready to play.” The coach said regular questions about him have become exasperating.
“It’s every day,” Coughlin said. “It’s the same question, over and over. He is not ready to play. He may be [two] or three weeks away, so we’re not going to talk about him. We have a game to play. Can we talk about the guys playing in the game instead of just the people that are on the injury report?”
Beckham called the situation frustrating — he did not miss a game due to injury during his entire college career — but said he won’t rush back just for the sake of expediency.
“I’m frustrated that I can’t play, but not so much frustrated with what I’m dealing with,” Beckham said Monday after the Giants’ brief workout. “It happened, and you have to embrace it and understand you have to do what’s best for your body. Hurting yourself is hurting your team.”
Beckham said he is leaving his situation in the hands of the Giants’ medical staff. Based on his comments, it sounds as if he will continue to take his customary spot by himself off to the side in practice and on the inactive list in games for at least the next two weeks.
“You want to be part of the team and make plays, but it’s just one of those things you have to take your time on,” Beckham said.
Beckham appears to have the support of his teammates. Victor Cruz said he tries to be a confidant for the young fellow receiver in case Beckham thinks the locker room is wondering about him.
Cruz said Beckham “has the right” to be frustrated about his situation but said the rookie hasn’t shown it, at least to Cruz.
“I talk to him from time to time to see how he is doing and how he is holding up and making sure he is keeping a level head,” Cruz said. “I know how things can get when you are injured and not playing. I just try to keep his head level and keep him on the right path. He is a good kid. He understands it. He gets it. He has to take it one day at a time until he is better.”