Chomps
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- Mar 18, 2019
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USA TODAY Sports
Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr. made his first public comments on Friday, five days after suffering a torn ACL while trying to make a tackle following an interception.
Beckham posted a message on Instagram. Here it is, exactly as posted by Beckham: “I just wanna thank you all for Checkin on me… this is tough really fkn tough, I really don’t have many words right now definitely not the right ones at least. I couldn’t tell u why this happened, this one doesn’t make much sense, it’s not for me to question, but I believe God truly has a plan and is using me for it. Ton of emotions flowing.. just takin some ME time, some time to heal. Thank u all for the Luv… be back soon.”
It’s an unfortunate situation for Beckham, as it is for any football player who suffers a torn ACL. But it’s not a freak injury when it comes to football at the highest level. It’s one of the risks assumed by every NFL player; however, most of those who haven’t had it happen to them delude themselves into thinking it never will.
It’s important for Beckham to approach his recovery and rehab with the right mindset, and it’s fully and completely his right to “believe God truly has a plan and is using me for it” in the same way Russell Wilson once believed God made him throw four interceptions in the first half of the 2014 NFC title game to make the eventual Seattle comeback even more meaningful. Others would take a more simple approach to the situation, reasoning that OBJ is a football player and football players get injured.
He deserves plenty of credit for the hustle and determination that put him in harm’s way. If we’re going to criticize offensive players who make “business decisions” after a change in possession (and maybe we shouldn’t, given the obvious risks), we should praise those who throw caution to the win when the time comes to respond to an unexpected development — like we did when DK Metcalf chased down Budda Baker last Sunday night.
So here’s to OBJ for playing football the way football is supposed to be played, and here’s to the kind of recovery that puts him back on the field for Week One of the 2021 season, even if he’s playing for someone other than the Browns.