Barring a miracle run, the Giants will miss the playoffs for the third straight season. But this year won’t be pointless. Years down the road, it may be remembered as the campaign Giants fans fell in love with a new stud wide receiver.
Antrel Rolle is part of the Odell Beckham Jr. fan club.
“I wish I had more years to play with this guy,” the Giants safety said Sunday after the team’s fifth straight loss, 16-10, to the 49ers at MetLife Stadium. “I love his competitive nature, I love his spirit. He wants to win. He wants to go out there and be the best, but most importantly, he wants to win.”
The 22-year-old Beckham, clearly the Giants’ No. 1 receiver since Victor Cruz was lost to a season-ending knee injury Week 6 in Philadelphia, continued his emergence. The rookie wide receiver hauled in six catches for 93 yards, including a picturesque 37-yard reception down the right sideline with 5:12 left in which he batted the ball to himself.
Running stride-for-stride with 49ers cornerback Perrish Cox down the right sideline, the two went up for an Eli Manning pass at the same time. Beckham got both hands on the ball, and guided it into his body with his right hand as he fell to the turf, his butt landing in play just before his back went out of bounds.
“I should have caught it the first time,” he said. “I just had to concentrate and get it the second time. I had to make a play.”
Coach Tom Coughlin is getting used to seeing his burgeoning star make plays like that.
“That’s what inspires people,” he said.
It set the Giants up for what should have been the go-ahead touchdown, at the 49ers 4-yard-line.
Instead, it was just another huge letdown for Big Blue, who failed on four consecutive pass attempts.
The Giants got the ball back one more time, on their own 15 with 1:09 left. They never moved the chains.
On fourth down, Manning missed Beckham over the middle. The wide receiver stayed down, furious with himself for what he described as a drop. He slammed his helmet on the turf.
“That’s a play we got to make and I was just frustrated I couldn’t,” he said. “I just love this game and sometimes it’s hard to control your emotions when you’re in the heat of battle. It’s something I shouldn’t have done.”
Coughlin loved the raw emotion.
“He wants to do well and he wants to be a good player, a great player like all of them in that category,” Coughlin said. “He wants the ball. He’s provided us with the idea that in big circumstances, he’ll make the big play for you.”
Losing doesn’t sit well with Beckham, who spent more time talking about his own mistakes afterward than discussing his big fourth-quarter play. He harped on his two drops and missing a few blocks.
“There are a lot of things I need to do to be able to help the offense keep moving the ball,” he said. “I’m working on them every day.”
