John Harbargh knows all too well what it’s like bringing in a high-profile wide receiver to a football team. Harbaugh had a front-row seat when the Philadelphia Eagles acquired Terrell Owens in 2004 and all the hype that surrounded his arrival.
Coming off three consecutive NFC Championship game appearances, Owens was brought into Philadelphia to get the Eagles over the hump and into the Super Bowl. That season was one of the most notable in Eagles franchise history, starting with the impact Owens had on the organization.
The Ravens head coach is seeing the same with Odell Beckham Jr., just a few weeks into the start of the wideout’s tenure in Baltimore.
“I love the guy. He’s a pro. He’s what you would expect from a world-class athlete,” Harbaugh said at Ravens minicamp Tuesday. “He’s a highly competitive guy. He wants to play at the highest level on only the highest level; he’s not interested in not playing and performing at the very highest level.
“From everything I’ve heard, he’s a big-time practice player. [From] everything I’ve seen, he’s a big-time ‘train himself’ guy, workout guy [to] get ready to play. So, those are the things that you always respect.”
Harbaugh, who was a special teams coach with the Eagles in 2004 when Owens had his huge season in Philadelphia, does see the similarities in routine between Beckham and Owens. The Eagles wide receiver finished with 77 catches for 1,200 yards and 14 touchdowns in 14 games. While Owens missed the postseason with a broken fibula, he miraculously returned for Super Bowl XXXIX and had nine catches for 122 yards and a touchdown — five weeks after the injury.
“We had him [Owens] in Philadelphia. He came in — all the hype and all the things from a personality standpoint — [and] nobody worked harder at practice, nobody worked harder in the weight room,” Harbaugh said. “The guy came to special teams meetings. I mean, he was into football.
“So, to me, those kinds of guys reach that level for a reason, and he [Beckham] is in a place in his career where I feel like he has a lot to prove, at this point, and I think he feels like he’s going to be the healthiest he’s been in a few years. So, let’s go.”
Beckham missed all of 2022 with a torn ACL, but Harbaugh is envisioning greatness in Baltimore. Harbaugh has been around the league a long time, so it shouldn’t be a surprise he thinks that highly of how his new wide receiver has reacted since coming to the Ravens.
Could Lamar Jackson and Odell Beckham have the same impact as Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens in 2004?
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Author: Jeff Kerr
June 13, 2023 | 6:43 pm
