Odell Beckham Jr has finally landed on an NFL team after missing the 2022 season. The last time we saw him on the field was in Super Bowl LVI when he tore the same ACL he tore during the 2020 season. After taking a year to rehab, there is hope that the 30-year-old will return fully healthy. If that is the case, how much of an impact will he have on the Baltimore Ravens? Let’s take a look!
A Last Second Bid Lands Odell Beckham Jr
Beckham was doing the usual round of free agency visits over Easter weekend. These usually involve a physical, meeting the team, coaching staff, and touring the facilities. After he visited with the Baltimore Ravens, he was scheduled to fly to New York to meet with the New York Jets. The Ravens’ front office wouldn’t risk losing their prize-free agent and made an incredible offer to make Beckham a Raven.
The contract wound up being quite the complicated one. General manager Eric DeCosta is taking pages out of the New Orleans Saints playbook with a one-year deal with plenty of attached void years, four to be exact. The contract in 2023 comes with a $13 million signing bonus but carries a cap hit of only $4 million. This is key as the Ravens are tight against the salary cap with the Lamar Jackson contract. This brings us to our next topic of discussion.
Is Lamar Returning To Baltimore?
Signing a free-agent wide receiver doesn’t make much sense if you don’t have a quarterback to throw to him. Is this move a sign that Baltimore and Lamar are getting closer to a deal? Lamar was heavily recruiting Beckham to join Baltimore, and the two were seen quickly celebrating the signing on social media. All signs that Lamar intends to return to the Ravens for the 2023 season.
One angle we don’t often see when discussing the Lamar situation is the negotiation process. It is frequently reported that Lamar doesn’t have an agent and is self-representing. Perhaps the Ravens are allowing other teams the headache of going through the negotiation process with Lamar just to come in and match whatever offer is reached. It seems like Lamar will be in Baltimore for 2023; it is just the price that has to be figured out.
Odell Beckham Jr.’s Role
The money attached to this contract and a player like Beckham’s pedigree means he will be on the field early and often for the Baltimore Ravens. The Baltimore Ravens ran the fifth fewest personnel groupings that involved three wide receivers in the NFL last year. Although, that was in the Greg Roman offense. It is important to note that Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken was hired to the same position on the Ravens coaching staff. This is a change, but Monken is bringing a 12-personnel-heavy scheme with him, which means there will only be two receivers on the field at any given time.
There are questions about Beckham’s effectiveness and longevity as he enters the twilight of his career. His yards per route run has declined since his rookie year, and in the 2021 season, he finished at 1.3, which was 113th in the league with players like K.J. Osborn and Marquise Goodwin. And if we want to talk about this landing spot for fantasy purposes, the Ravens haven’t had a receiver crest 800 yards outside of Marquise Brown in 2021. The combination of low volume and poor efficiency may be the death sentence for Beckham’s fantasy value.
Impact of Other Ravens
The odd men out in this deal are Rashod Bateman and Devin Duvernay. Since the season ended, the Ravens have been trying to add to this receiver room. The front office is not confident that Bateman or Duvernay can be relied on as full-time starters, and it would not surprise me to see them on different teams after their rookie contracts. The lack of volume we already discussed for Beckham also affects these players. All three will have great fantasy performances throughout the season, but it will be hard to rely on any of them for production predictably.
Actionable Advice
I advised selling Rashod Bateman before the Beckham signing, but this move further reinforces this point. Unfortunately, it will also suppress the value you will see in return for him. Beckham also falls into the sell category, which may be one of his career’s last few value spikes. A quick search of the DynastyGM trade browser returns two trades for these players since the trade occurred earlier this week.
Want exclusive access to my rookie rankings and those of over twenty fellow analysts? Subscribe to the #NerdHerd, where you get exclusive content, dynasty/rookie rankings, and DynastyGM! If you want 15% off ANY SUBSCRIPTION, USE PROMO CODE “LUNA” or CLICK HERE.
I hope you enjoyed this rookie profile. Be sure to check back often, as I will cover all fantasy-relevant positions. For more content like this, follow me on Twitter @DanT_NFL. DMs are always open for questions, comments, or craft beer recommendations!
