“I’m sorry, what?!”
That was my exact response on Thursday when one of my inside sources—and by inside source, I mean one of my homeboys who got an ESPN breaking news alert a split second before I did—brought it to my attention that free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. will be joining the Los Angeles Rams.
“Yeah, bruh,” my boy said. “Them boys ain’t fucking around.”
No, sir. They are not.
In the same season that Los Angeles just so happens to be hosting the Super Bowl, the Rams (7-2) are doing everything humanly possible to ensure that they’ll be front and center to collect the Vince Lombardi trophy. And as if pairing newly-acquired Von Miller with human wrecking ball Aaron Donald, domestic terrorist Jalen Ramsey, and sack master Leonard Floyd wasn’t enough, we now have OBJ lining up next to Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods, and Van Jefferson.
In what realm of reality does anyone want this smoke?
SPOILER WARNING: They don’t.
Prior to signing with the Rams, Beckham was reportedly considering the Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Unvaccinated Liars, Seattle Seahawks, and the New England Patriots. But now that the former Cleveland Browns wideout provides Los Angeles with yet another lethal weapon at its disposal, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford expressed his excitement about the team’s latest acquisition.
“It’s an opportunity for us as a team, it’s an opportunity for him to come in here and prove himself to us,” Stafford said. “What our room is about in the receiver room is pretty special. I know he’ll fit right in and continue to get better and hopefully help us as a team.
“Everybody on our team carves out their role. They do a great job of figuring out what that role is going to be and going out there and proving it both on the practice field and in games, and given the opportunities I know he’ll do the same.”
It’s wild to think that a little over a week ago, Beckham spent his Sundays being almost ignored entirely on the field. This contentious relationship precipitated his abrupt release last week, which we previously reported at The Root:
The acrimony between Beckham and the Browns hit critical mass when a number of notable figures openly petitioned for the team to trade its star receiver prior to Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline. LeBron James spearheaded his own #FreeOBJ campaign on Twitter, but shit got really real when Odell Beckham Sr., the LSU product’s own father, posted an 11-minute video on Instagram that highlighted all the times his son was wide open and Mayfield didn’t throw him the ball.
All I know is with the Rams set to face off against the San Francisco 49ers (3-5) on Monday night, the entire league is about to be put on notice if and when Miller, who has yet to make his Rams debut, and Beckham take the field.