Odell Beckham: ‘Josh Norman Is Relevant Because Of Me’

Odell Beckham is one of the NFL’s biggest stars. It’s no surprise that he ran into trouble with another loud personality. Last season, the New York Giants squared off against the NFC South’s powerhouse, the Carolina Panthers. The matchup was highly anticipated because both respective teams harbored one of the best defensive and offensive players in the NFL. Panthers’ star cornerback Josh Norman was not shy about covering Beckham. It wasn’t long before the two players butted heads. The confrontation ended in Beckham getting a suspension for viciously tackling Norman.

Fast forwarding to the 2016 NFL offseason, Josh Norman is now a member of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins signed him after the Panthers failed to work out a long term deal. Norman and Beckham will now see each other twice a year, so their confrontations may continue. In an interview with GQ Magazine, Beckham had a few words about his new rival. According to ESPN, who managed to get the latest issue of GQ before it was released online, Odell Beckham claimed that Norman wouldn’t be anything if it was not for him.

“The reason he’s become so relevant is because of me.”

After this statement was made, it doesn’t appear that Beckham is going to put the past behind him. Norman has yet to make a response, but he did happen to leave a small hint on how he feels about the comments made. Norman retweeted an NFL writer for the Redskins Capital Connection when he tagged the superstar cornerback in his tweet about the interview.

The statement made by Anthony Raposa is probably accurate. Norman doesn’t seem like the kind of person to let those comments made roll off his shoulder. The rivalry is just going to get worse at this point if the comments on both sides continue. It doesn’t help that the Giants and Redskins are already bitter rivals as it is. The tensions for not only both players, but both teams will be riding high going into their games.

Odell Beckham is trying to argue that Norman joined the Redskins solely to get some spotlight because of their previous confrontation. He went on to claim that the media wouldn’t be covering the issue if Norman never signed with Washington.

“If I wasn’t playing him twice a year, maybe people wouldn’t bring it up as much. But now it’ll be a lot more media attention for him, attention that I don’t really look for, attention that I don’t need.”

In a way, Beckham may actually be right. The media may not have continued covering their bitter meeting if Norman never signed with the Redskins. Moments like this will only add wood to the fire between the two athletes.

What makes things even more interesting is that the NFC East is always a tight race. The Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, and New York Giants all have enough talent to compete for the division title. A penalty or suspension on Josh Norman or Odell Beckham could easily ruin either team’s season.

When Beckham was suspended last season, it was clear that the Giants really couldn’t do much offensively without him. Even though the Giants will have Victor Cruz and Sterling Shepard to lean on this season, Beckham is still a key part of the offense. Josh Norman will probably be looking to provoke Beckham once again in order to derail the Giants’ playoff hopes.

NFL analyst Skip Bayless couldn’t help but comment on the matter. Bayless isn’t known to be a big fan of Odell Beckham or the New York Giants, so it isn’t a surprise that his words weren’t very kind. Bayless isn’t the only NFL analyst who feels that Odell Beckham overreacted to Norman tormenting him, he has received a good amount of criticism since the incident occurred.

Odell Beckham Jr. says Josh Norman is more relevant "because of me." No, ODB is less relevant because Josh Norman sent him over the edge.

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) July 21, 2016

NFL fans will just have to wait until Week 3 of football season to see if Odell Beckham’s feud with Josh Norman will continue. The Giants will play the Redskins on their own home turf, which should make things even more interesting.

[Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images]