Why Seahawks are better off not getting Odell Beckham, Jr.

Freddie Swain = OBJ?

Let’s look at Swain’s record. Now in his second season, Swain has been targeted 45 times and caught 29 balls. That’s a catch rate of 64 percent; advantage, Swain. Of those 29 catches, Swain converted 12 first downs and scored four touchdowns. In the past two seasons, OBJ turned his 40 catches into 28 first downs and 3 scores. First down percentage for Swain is 41 percent; for Beckham it’s 70 percent. Big advantage there for OBJ. But the touchdowns are weak. Swain has scored on 14 percent of his catches, while Beckham found the end zone half that often, 7.5 percent.

Let’s dig a little deeper. Swain’s average yardage per catch is 11.3, while OBJ’s is 13.8 over the last two years (13.9 for his Cleveland years, 14.0 overall). Advantage there goes to Beckham. See 12s, I’m giving you all the pertinent mathyness, not just the numbers that support my opinions. No numners are needed to support the conclusion that any beverage that begins with the name “Budweiser” is best poured down the drain.

Back to football. Swain’s YAC (yards after catch) in his career average is past two years is 7.3 yards. Beckham’s in the past two seasons is just 2.4 yards. Huge advantage for Swain. Lest you think Swain’s average is skewed by his amazing 68-yard catch against the Titans, his average YAC as a rookie was actually higher than this year, at 7.8 yards.

As for D’Wayne Eskridge, it’s a little difficult to make comparisons with a player with one game under his belt. I’ll just say that he was one of my three picks for the Seahawks offensive breakthrough players. As he’s due back in the lineup this week after his extended absence due to a concussion, he has plenty of time to fulfill the potential we saw here at 12thManRising.

Let’s remember that the biggest reason Beckham wanted out of Cleveland is that he wanted the ball more. Lee mentioned this in his article, and again we agree. Lockett and Metcalf are both clearly better receivers at this point in their careers. OBJ is living off his reputation from spectacular early career. His production has fallen off every year since his second season. He hasn’t been a Pro Bowler since 2016. I’d say he shouldn’t take targets from Swain or Eskridge, or Gerald Everett or Will Dissly, either. tl;dr version: Odell Beckham Jr. isn’t OBJ anymore, and the Seahawks are better off without him.