Odell Beckham Jr.’s highway from a crumpled determine sprawled out on the Sofi Stadium turf in Los Angeles with a torn ACL in Super Bowl 56 to taking the sphere for the primary time as a Raven was an arduous one, bodily and emotionally.
It’s no marvel, then, that the easy act of slipping on a jersey for the beginning of a compulsory three-day minicamp Tuesday on the workforce’s facility in Owings Mills struck him as a “meaningful” second. The 30-year-old former All-Pro missed all of final season with what was the second main knee harm of his profession and was again on the Ravens’ facility for the primary time since signing as a free agent in April. It was his first significant soccer motion in practically 500 days.
“I’ve been trying to not think about it because there’s been so many disappointments,” Beckham mentioned. “I’ve been in a good mental head space to where I’ve tried to downplay this, but I think I’ll be excited to put a jersey on and go out and do the thing you’ve done your whole life.”
About that factor, the workload shouldn’t be anticipated to be notably heavy for Beckham in what are the ultimate offseason practices earlier than Baltimore breaks for the beginning of coaching camp in late July.
Still, Beckham mentioned he feels good about the place he’s at within the technique of his return to full velocity after his harm with the Rams in February 2022.
“It feels good to get out of bed and not feel pain,” he mentioned. “It’s been a long journey this time around.”
While he wouldn’t put a share on simply how good he feels, Beckham smiled and famous that he’s nonetheless “definitely fast.”
“I don’t have a set play amount or number that’s in my head,” Beckham mentioned. “You come here, be a pro, you get your reps, get your work, you talk. You don’t always have to build chemistry by taking reps.”
Likewise, Ravens coach John Harbaugh is in no hurry to push in relation to Beckham’s return to full velocity in what would be the receiver’s ninth 12 months within the NFL.
“He’s going to be full go in terms of health, but I also expect us to ramp up a lot of our guys,” Harbaugh mentioned. “We’re not going to be in a hurry to throw guys out there too much [with] too many reps. … It’ll be a see-as-we-go.”
It is just mid-June, in spite of everything. Training camp doesn’t start for one more six weeks, and the Ravens’ first regular-season sport isn’t till Sept. 10.
But will probably be essential for Beckham to return up to the mark on a brand new offense and extra importantly to develop chemistry with quarterback Lamar Jackson. He was one of many important causes Beckham signed with Baltimore, and in flip Jackson signed his five-year extension with the membership a couple of weeks after Beckham.
Though Ravens gamers will head house for the summer time after this week, Beckham mentioned he and Jackson plan to work out collectively earlier than coaching camp.
“Chemistry is going to develop over time,” Beckham mentioned. “The most important thing is getting ready for the season coming up in September.”
It helps, too, that the Ravens’ new offensive coordinator is Todd Monken, who labored with Beckham in the identical function with the Cleveland Browns in 2019. That season, Beckham caught 74 passes for 1,035 yards and 4 touchdowns.
The language is totally different now, Beckham mentioned, however conceptually there are similarities that carry over.
His arrival additionally gives a badly wanted jolt to a receiving corps that ranked final within the NFL in yards in three of the previous 4 years and consists of largely younger and unproven gamers.
When wholesome, Beckham has proved to be one of many league’s higher receivers all through his profession. Five occasions he has topped the 1,000-yard mark, the final of these underneath Monken. In 2021, his final season on the sphere, he caught 44 passes for 537 yards and 5 touchdowns in 14 video games for the Browns and Rams.
In that season’s Super Bowl, he was additionally maybe on his technique to a Most Valuable Player efficiency with two catches for 52 yards and a landing earlier than he went down late within the second quarter. The Rams went on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals, giving Beckham his first ring, however the expertise was a bitter one.
“It’s hard when you get to the pinnacle of success in this sport and feel like it was something that was taken away from you,” Beckham mentioned. “It wasn’t one thing that was straightforward to stay with. It was very laborious to undergo that.
“It sucks. I watched plenty of Super Bowls and finally, it was my opportunity and I was so locked in. I could feel it that day when I woke up. … I knew that I was probably going to be the best person on the field that day. I just wanted to have that moment.”
Finally, he was capable of have one other one on Tuesday in what the Ravens hope would be the first of many.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com