Ravens GM Eric DeCosta confident Odell Beckham Jr. has bounced back from ACL injury: ‘Ready to explode again’

Odell Beckham Jr., 30, missed all of last year due to an ACL injury. This offseason, Beckham found a new home in Baltimore, signing a one-year, $15 million contract with the Ravens. 

As he heads into the 2023 season, there are a lot of questions on how his knee will hold up post injury. There is no doubt, however, coming from the Ravens organization; they are confident he can be the star player he was before the injury.

In March, Beckham held a workout to show teams the progress he has made over the last year. Ravens assistant wide receivers coach Keith Williams attended Beckhams workout and was impressed. General manager Eric DeCosta also did his homework on evaluating the status of Beckham’s health by watching film many times before making an offer to the former first round pick. 

“We saw everything we needed to see, knowing that it’s going to just improve,” DeCosta said, via NBC Sports. “When a guy has a serious injury, in general, it only gets better. It may take time. Sometimes it takes longer, but it only gets better.”

DeCosta is not only satisfied with how far Beckham has come since being sidelined in the Super Bowl, he also believes that OBJ will make even more progress as the season approaches.

“What we saw was extremely encouraging and I can’t wait to see the progression from March to April to May to September,” DeCosta said. “That’s probably the thing that we’re most excited about. We’re getting somebody who is ready to explode again. And he’s in the right environment with the right quarterback, with the right team, in the right city. It’s the perfect player at the perfect time.”

Beckham’s last time playing was Super Bowl LVI as a member of the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams championship was on Feb. 13, 2022, meaning it has been 425 days since he has laced up in a game situation.

With so much time passing since his last reception, there will be doubts lingering until he can get on the field and prove himself.

In the 2021 season he played six games with the Cleveland Browns and eight with the Rams. He had 44 receptions on 82 targets for 537 yards and five touchdowns. His receptions, yards and touchdowns increased from 2020 to 2021, but were less than he recorded in 2019 and 2018.