Odell Beckham Jr. is nervous. He’s not sure he can handle it.
Oh, not the long-awaited arrival of his NFL debut, which will come Sunday against the Falcons after his right hamstring this week passed all the necessary tests. Beckham is footing the bill for a 10-player dinner Friday night at Del Frisco’s in Manhattan. It’s the first time the rookie will dig into his wallet to feed his teammates in the time-honored tradition for first-round draft picks.
“It’s going to set me back, pocket’s going to hurt,’’ Beckham said.
The receivers and a few defensive backs will attend Beckham’s soiree. He didn’t know much about the restaurant and when he was told it was a classic steakhouse, Beckham shook his head.
“Oh man, that means classic pockets,’’ said Beckham, who signed a four-year, $10.4 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $5.88 million.
“Spread the wealth,’’ receiver Rueben Randle said hungrily.
Rookies have been known to have to pay exorbitant bills, but those on the guest list insist they will not go overboard.
“Just a little steak and potatoes,’’ Preston Parker said.
“I’m not going to take a plate to go,’’ added Randle. “We’re going to make sure we’re full but we’re not going to overdo it.’’
That did not stop Randle from a projection.
“I like the crab cakes,’’ he said. “I’ll get two orders, at least.’’
It has been a rough NFL introduction for Beckham, who strained his right hamstring in the spring, barely practiced, missed all five preseason games and the first four regular-season games. He’s set to finally play this weekend. On Thursday he made it through a third practice this week.
Offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo cautioned that the plan is, “We’ll take is slow with him,’’ but that doesn’t mean they won’t get Beckham on the field and throw him the ball.
“He has a unique skill set,’’ McAdoo said. “He would just be a nice guy to add to the mix.’’
Perhaps because he was hurt so long, the veterans took it easy on Beckham, but he did hear what he described as “some grief’’ during the weeks of inactivity.
“Things like, ‘You’re just here collecting checks,’ that, type of stuff,” Beckham said.
Now it is time for Beckham to pay up.
“I hope they don’t order drinks,’’ Beckham said. “Otherwise it’s going to be a hefty bill.’’
