Francesa Blasts Beckham, Says He Damaged Coughlin's Legacy And Giants' Image
NEW YORK (WFAN) -- It was a rough day for Odell Beckham Jr. on Sunday.
The star receiver's numbers looked decent enough -- he caught six passes for 76 yards and a touchdown -- but the numbers don't tell the story.
The Giants' best player feuded with Panthers cornerback Josh Norman all game, and he completely lost his composure on the field and on the sidelines. He was penalized three times for unnecessary roughness and was lucky that more flags weren't thrown in his direction.
Many expected the Pro Bowler to be ejected, but he wasn't. On Monday, the NFL announced that Beckham has been suspended for one game.
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WFAN host Mike Francesa opened his Monday program with a rant about the Giants and Beckham's behavior, and he was as fired up as ever.
"He's got a lot to learn because all it is is about him," Francesa said. "It's not about the team and it's not about winning. It's about his performance. I can't believe that he thought he could get away with that, but he does. And on the sideline they were pleading with him. Nobody did anything!
"And he's running up and down the sidelines, supposedly yelling -- according to the reporter -- saying that nobody here cares! (He) should have been put on his rear end or sent to the locker room. And I'll tell you right now, (referee) Terry McAulay should be suspended for not throwing him out of the game. He should have thrown him out of the game. he should have thrown Norman out of the game.
"But he should have left first. And if the Giants aren't embarrassed by what this kid put forth yesterday, they should be. That was an absolute disgrace. And if that's the star player you want, he's all yours. Because you know what? That's not a star player to me. That's not a class player, that's not a good player. That's a guy who, for all his abilities, has become a complete clown in every way.
"He's been edging this way all year. And you saw it yesterday. When it didn't go his way, he acts like a three-year-old. A dangerous three-year-old. He's lucky he didn't get hurt, he's lucky he didn't hurt somebody else. But you know what he did? He completely damaged the legacy of the head coach and the image of that franchise. Made me sick watching that yesterday!"
According to multiple reports, Beckham was in a bad state of mind because Panthers practice-squad player Marcus Ball carried a bat onto the field during warm-ups and motioned with it in Beckham's direction. Norman reportedly held the bat at some point during warm-ups.
Giants reviewed pregame incidents b/n Panthers players and Beckham. Are convinced he was threatened physically and called homophobic slurs
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 21, 2015
Accounts from various people on sidelines point to a series of events that played a role in Beckham's unusual emotional state in that game
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 21, 2015
Panthers officials deny strongly any threats or slurs were made and are adamant they have long used a bat as a motivating prop...
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 21, 2015
Panthers communications director Steven Drummond said: "absolutely nothing happened on the sideline. I was there. No one was threatened...
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 21, 2015
Drummond went on to say: "no one was threatened with a bat. It didn't happen. It's a diversionary tactic and a good one at that."
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 21, 2015
The Panthers have been bringing a bat onto the field for much of the season, and they maintain that a threat was not made to the Giant.
Come on now my boys carry the bat with them as it symbolizes my presence still being with them at the game and the NFL has a problem???
— Bené Benwikere (@Benwik21) December 21, 2015
I carried the bat out the tunnel against Atlanta and my teammates held it during warm ups that game to pic.twitter.com/SQTcIy8mrF
— Bené Benwikere (@Benwik21) December 21, 2015
And on top of that I believe Odell is an awesome player met him a few times but during the game in between the lines there was no bat
— Bené Benwikere (@Benwik21) December 21, 2015
With the loss, the 6-8 Giants are a safe bet to miss the playoffs for the fourth straight season. Their final two games are against the Vikings and Eagles.