Latest leaks make Odell Beckham’s future even murkier

[Who Dey]

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Remember when Freddie Kitchens vowed to fire anyone who served as an unnamed source? If he was serious about that, he may want to get to work.

As the Browns’ season continues to slowly disintegrate (they still have a chance at making it to the playoffs, but it’s a steep uphill climb), conflicting leaks have emerged over the past day in an apparent effort to apportion blame for the failure of the team — and the failure of the trade for receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

It started with someone leaking to Cleveland.com that Beckham’s talent has been “wasted” in a “dysfunctional” offense. That one surely came from Beckham or someone aligned with him, an expression of frustration with the failure of the team to use him more than it has. It also represents a strong statement of no confidence in Kitchens himself.

The process continued with the Sunday Splash! report that Beckham needs surgery to repair a sports hernia, a report that both excuses Beckham’s subpar performance (relative to past years) and explains the team’s inability to get more out of him.

The reports show that Beckham’s future has fallen squarely into the “to be determined” category, with Beckham’s interest in staying likely depending on changes made, or not made, by the organization — and with Cleveland’s interest in continuing the relationship likely depending on an objective assessment of whether the team would be better or worse without a player who serves as a constant magnet for scrutiny and criticism driven in large part by his inability or refusal to understand that press conferences are not the place to conduct a total download of his inner monologue on sensitive subjects like his future with the team.

At this point, everything is on the table. Unless both sides want to continue the relationship, there’s no reason to do so. The question then becomes whether and to what extent the Browns can salvage all, part, or most of what they gave up to get him, and whether they’d resist doing the right thing for the player and the team if they can’t get whatever they regard as enough in return for him.