Odell Beckham Jr: I Dropped the Ball
UPDATE: Odell Beckham Jr. argued in his appeal Wednesday that he was threatened by Carolina Panthers players with bats Sunday and that led him to delivering a helmet-to-helmet hit on cornerback Josh Norman.
The NFL didn't buy it. ESPN's NFL Insider Adam Schefter tweeted Wednesday evening that "Odell Beckham Jr.'s one-game suspension stands. Suspension upheld. Giants will not have OBJ vs. Vikings."
Missing Beckham during their Sunday Night Football match-up against the Minnesota Vikings could spell the final blow to the New York Giants' chances of making the post-season.
At 6-8, the Giants' playoff chances didn't look good before Wednesday's decision and they only look worse now.
PREVIOUSLY: The NFL came down on Odell Beckham Jr. on Monday, suspending the New York Giants' star wide receiver for launching himself in a helmet-to-helmet hit on Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman on Sunday.
However, in an interesting twist, the Giants are claiming that the Panthers set the tone for an ultra-physical game by having a player dressed in street clothes walk around the field with a bat in his hands during pre-game introductions. The team even claims that the player handed the bat to Norman, who threatened Beckham, as reported by Bleacher Report.
The Panthers counter that a player always carries a bat during pre-game warmups to signify bringing the wood.
Still, NFL vice president of football operations Merton Hanks ruled that Beckham's actions put Norman at risk of injury.
Beckham has already appealed the one-game suspension and that appeal will be heard Wednesday.
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Watch: BET Breaks: The Odell Beckham Jr. and Josh Norman Saga Continues in the video below.
(Photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
