New York Giants: Eli thinks OBJ contract needs to get done, he’s right

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning says that the Giants need to get Odell Beckham Jr.’s contract done as soon as possible.

The New York Giants started mandatory minicamp on Tuesday and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was there despite not getting the contract extension he has been seeking.

Beckham is entering the final year of his rookie contract. It’s no secret that he wants to be the highest-paid receiver in the NFL. However,  for some reason a deal isn’t done.

Giants quarterback Eli Manning can relate to what OBJ is going through contract wise because in 2015 he was in contract negotiations and didn’t sign an extension until two days before the season opener.

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Manning knows that being in contract negotiations can be stressful and weigh on a player.

Eli told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post:

"“Unfortunately, [contract negotiations weighing on a player] can [happen], Even though it wasn’t really something that was on my mind you just had to keep answering questions about it. It’s not something I discussed with people, but for whatever reason it becomes an issue. I didn’t harp on it, I didn’t worry about it, but the fact that it was in the papers or you had to answer about it, it can become a hassle.”"

He then had a message to the Giants: get Beckham’s contract done so people can stop talking about it.

Eli is right. The Giants need to get Beckham’s contract done as soon as possible. The worse thing that could happen is the season starts and Odell still doesn’t have a new deal.

If the season starts and a deal isn’t done, then it will be a distraction of Beckham and the team. That is definitely not a good thing.

Beckham wasn’t planning on participating in any team drills during minicamp due to his ankle injury from last year. However Beckham was cleared for practice and the Giants hoped that he would participate in some reps, according to ESPN’s Josina Anderson.

The receiver did participate in some individual drills and ran some routes with no defenders and contact on Tuesday.

“Yeah, he did a good job today,” Giants coach Pat Shurmur said. “So he was cleared to be out there; and he practiced, and he did a good job.”

When it comes to Beckham’s contract Shurmur isn’t worried about it.

I’m not worried about it; neither is he,”he said. “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I look at a player that loves football. He’s out there right now doing his thing, and he wants to be here. And as the coach and the player, that’s what we talk about.”

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While Shurmur and Beckham are not worrying about OBJ’s contract situation, the Giants need to listen to Eli. It is time to get a new deal done. If not, they will start to worry about it and it will become a distraction for the entire team.