The Minnesota Vikings are adding some depth to their wide receiver corps by signing Odell Beckham Jr., the team announced. Specifically, the veteran pass catcher will join Minnesota's practice squad. Beckham wasn't on the open market long following his Sept. 29 release from the New York Giants.
That concluded a brief second stint with New York after initially signing with the club on June 1 and making the opening 53-man roster. Despite making the team, Beckham wasn't utilized at all in the Giants' passing game, logging zero catches and zero targets over three games played. Judging by his social media activity following his release, Beckham was less than thrilled about his return to the Giants being cut short.
Head coach John Harbaugh said following Beckham's release that it just "wasn't working for us." Now, Beckham gets a fresh start in Minnesota, where he does have some familiarity with the coaching staff, specifically head coach Kevin O'Connell. O'Connell was the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Rams when Beckham was acquired by the franchise during the 2021 season. In eight regular-season games played that year under O'Connell, Beckham caught 27 balls for 305 yards and five touchdowns.
During the club's run to a Super Bowl LVI title, Beckham took it to another level, catching 21 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns. He seems primed to win Super Bowl MVP honors as he made an early impact in that title win over the Cincinnati Bengals, but tore his ACL in the midst of the contest. While Beckham, 33, isn't the same player he was back then, he does give Minnesota some much-needed depth at receiver.
Top wideout Justin Jefferson has been dealing with an ankle injury, which forced him to miss the Week 5 win over Miami. After Jefferson, Jordan Addison and Jauan Jennings headline the wide receiver depth chart on the active roster. Beckham entered the NFL as the No. 12 overall pick of the Giants during the 2014 NFL Draft out of LSU.
Over the course of his career, he's made two second-team All-Pro teams (2015 and 2016) and has 575 career regular-season catches to go along with 7,987 receiving yards and 59 touchdown receptions.
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