AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman
Darryl Slater of NJ.com and Andy Slater of Fox Sports 960 reported that NFL free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was escorted off a flight from Miami to Los Angeles on Sunday morning.
Andy Slater @AndySlater
SLATER SCOOP: Odell Beckham Jr. was kicked off a plane in Miami on Sunday.
Flight crew said the NFL WR was in and out of consciousness and wouldn’t put on his seat belt, I’m told.
The Los Angeles bound flight was delayed after Beckham refused to leave making everybody get off.
Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network also shared a statement from the Miami-Dade Police Department, which noted that airline attendants were worried Beckham was “seriously ill” but that Beckham initially refused to exit the plane:
Tom Pelissero @TomPelissero
From Miami-Dade Police on Odell Beckham Jr. being removed from a flight this morning: pic.twitter.com/ieD40w4wkv
Beckham sent a number of tweets on Sunday morning, seemingly about the situation:
Odell Beckham Jr @obj
Never in my life have I experienced what just happened to me… I’ve seen it alll..
One person who shared video of Beckham leaving the plane claimed in a tweet he had been “unresponsive and unruly.”
CG @TheMalibuArtist
Forcing us off the plane because you were unresponsive and unruly is not comedy to the hundreds of folks trying to get home dude. Not cool man. pic.twitter.com/9w6Y2X0sE4
Another person sent out a series of tweets outlining the alleged circumstances of the situation:
Chris Daly @ctopherd
So we get back to the gate and police come on the plane and go to first class. We wait another 20 minutes and then there’s an announcement that everyone has to get off the plane with their luggage because of company policy.
Chris Daly @ctopherd
People cheered when he was escorted off the plane and a few had their phones out already and recorded it. Now everyone is reboarding but no OBJ obviously. So odd.
Beckham, 30, has remained a free agent up to this point in the season as he recovers from an ACL tear.
He’s expected to choose a new team in December, with the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport writing Sunday that the veteran wideout “plans to visit the New York Giants on Thursday and Friday, sources informed of his plans say. After the weekend, Beckham will meet with with the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 5. He’ll also visit the Buffalo Bills.”
Art Stapleton @art_stapleton
OBJ has played things about as well as he could to this point with visits expected with Giants, Bills and Cowboys (NYG first the end of this week).
So much TBD regarding contract terms, financials and how ready OBJ is physically to play. There are still unknowns here.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted that the Cowboys are widely considered the front-runners to sign him:
Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter
Here’s what one executive on a team linked to Odell Beckham Jr. said this weekend about a potential landing spot for the free-agent WR: “It sounds like it will be Dallas. If you’re in Vegas, your 2-1 favorite is the Cowboys and everyone else is 5- or 6-1.”
Beckham split his 2021 season between the Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Rams, catching 44 passes for 537 yards and five scores. The three-time Pro Bowler was far better in the Rams’ run to a title, however, catching 21 passes for 288 yards and two scores before tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl.
That career resurgence after his struggles during his time in Cleveland made him a fascinating free-agent target for contending teams in need of an upgrade at wide receiver. Now, those teams may inquire further about the circumstances of Sunday’s situation.
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