National Football League

Shannon Sharpe: Odell Beckham Jr. doesn't realize his value to the Giants

Published Dec. 14, 2016 8:38 a.m. ET

Nick Schwartz

Odell Beckham Jr. is fifth in the NFL in receiving yards and fourth in receiving touchdowns and his Giants have won six of their last seven games, but the headlines surrounding Beckham over the last few weeks have more often been about his comments and gestures on the sideline and in press conferences rather than his play on the field.

Earlier this week, Beckham stood by his criticism of officials in the Giants loss to the Steelers, joking that "even Stevie Wonder" can see it.

On Undisputed, Shannon Sharpe argued that Beckham's frustration is harming the Giants, and that part of it stems from a misunderstanding of his role.

“What Odell does not understand… he looks at it that his value is only tied into catching and touchdowns. He doesn’t understand that sometimes his job is to be a decoy, to clean out or vacate an area that another receiver is going to come into.

Sometimes it’s about knocking guys off on a long running play. Sometimes long running plays happen because the receiver is blocking downfield. But in Odell’s mind, his only value to the Giants can be if he’s catching passes and scoring touchdowns. So when he’s not doing that, he sees that [as] ‘what am I really doing out here?’

That’s the biggest thing for him, and what teams are trying to do … is eliminate him early. Because the longer he goes without a catch, the more the frustration starts to build.”