The New York Giants have settled one of the last lingering questions of training camp, choosing to keep Odell Beckham Jr. on the 53-man roster as the NFL’s cutdown deadline arrived Sunday.
Beckham, 33, spent the summer trying to prove he still belonged after a year away from the league. That effort paid off, according to reporting from ESPN’s Jordan Raanan.
“OBJ is making the Giants 53-man roster, per sources,” Raanan wrote. “Beckham proved he can get open + stay healthy this summer. Didn’t miss a practice after full year out of the league.”
Raanan added another line that captured the standard set by new head coach John Harbaugh.
“John Harbaugh wanted Beckham to earn his roster spot. He did.”
The decision closes a long loop for a receiver who first arrived in New York as the No. 12 overall pick in 2014. Beckham became one of the most recognizable players in franchise history during that first stretch, then left after the 2018 season and later bounced through several stops, including a Super Bowl run with the Rams and a later stint with Harbaugh in Baltimore.
He played nine games with Miami in 2024, finishing with nine catches for 55 yards, and sat out 2025 entirely. When the Giants brought him back in the spring, Harbaugh made the terms plain. A roster spot was not a gift. Beckham had to show he could still separate, stay available and accept a supporting role behind younger pass catchers.
He did that work in public. Beckham did not miss a practice during a demanding camp. He improved as the weeks went on and saved his best football for the end of preseason. Against the Jets on Friday, he caught three passes for 53 yards and nearly scored on a deep ball that would have gone for a long touchdown if the throw had been on time.
Harbaugh had already signaled that the veteran had done enough. After the preseason finale, the coach said Beckham had played well, gotten better through camp and deserved credit for the way he handled the grind.
The receiver room around him is crowded. Malik Nabers remains the featured target. Darnell Mooney, Darius Slayton and rookie Malachi Fields also look secure. Braxton Berrios gained ground after Calvin Austin III tore his ACL in camp, because Berrios can play in the slot and return punts. Beckham does not offer that special-teams value, which made his case tighter than it might have been a decade ago.
Still, the Giants needed a veteran who could win routes and stay healthy. Austin’s injury opened a door. Beckham walked through it by remaining available every day after two torn ACLs on the same knee and a full season away from football.
The cap math also helped. Beckham is on a low-cost deal that gives New York a proven name without locking the franchise into a large future commitment. For a team still assembling an offense around young quarterback Jaxson Dart, that combination of experience and flexibility mattered.
Beckham has said the reunion would mean everything, both for the chance to finish with the club that drafted him and for the example he wants to set for his young son. He has also talked about wanting to win a championship in New York, unfinished business from his first tour.
None of that sentiment would have been enough on its own. Harbaugh’s Giants have spent the summer emphasizing accountability. The coach wanted production, availability and a willingness to be a complementary piece rather than the face of the offense.
Beckham met that test, according to the people briefed on the final roster. He got open. He stayed on the field. He accepted a lesser role after years of being the main attraction.
The Giants now turn toward a Sept. 13 opener against Dallas. Beckham’s job from here is simpler and harder at the same time: stay healthy, win the snaps he is given and show that the player who once lit up MetLife Stadium still has something left as a part-time option.
For a 33-year-old coming off a year out of the league, making the 53-man roster is the first win. The next ones will have to come on Sundays.
