Another hot take from Jason Whitlock , this time about New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.
With Colin Cowherd, Jason Whitlock co-hosts Speak for Yourself , an offering on Fox Sports 1 (FS1) that airs weekdays at 5 p.m. Eastern time, which appears to be the network’s answer to ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption .
The New York Giants drafted Beckham Jr. in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft with the 12th overall pick out of Louisiana State University. In his first three years in the league, Beckham caught 288 passes for 4,122 yards, with 35 touchdowns. He will be paired with former New York Jets star Brandon Marshall this season.
The background for the FS1 panel discussion was the Giants’ ownership expressed interest in signing Beckham to a long-term deal, but without specifying a timetable for when that might happen. In April, the team picked up his fifth-year option. Beckham has indicated that he would like to finish his career as a Giant.
According to Cowherd, Odell Beckham Jr. is currently the most fascinating New York City-area professional athlete, other than Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees to a lesser extent, which may justify a big contract on that basis alone.
The often contrarian Jason Whitlock registered his disagreement with his co-host’s viewpoint, suggesting that he’s been tricked or duped by the Beckham publicity machine.
“You’ve fallen for the okey-doke. Odell Beckham Jr. is the most overhyped, overrated player, and he is a great player, but he is overrated. And his celebrity is completely overrated. You put him and Carmelo Anthony in the same room and watch what happens. It ain’t even close. If Odell, not for the blonde hair, people wouldn’t even know who the hell Odell Beckham Jr. is.”
Anthony plays small forward for the New York Knicks in the NBA, although rumors persist that the star is on the trading block.
Panelists Eric Davis and Ray Lewis disagreed with Whitlock about Odell Beckham Jr. See video embedded below.
Unlike most sports media pundits, Whitlock has expressed criticism of the Colin Kaepernick National Anthem protest as more or less as divisive, childish, uninformed, and self-serving. He also backed Michael Vick when he recently suggested that the ex-San Francisco Giants QB might benefit from getting a haircut prior to his next NFL job interview.
The former Kansas City Star and HuffPost columnist and Ball State University football player rejoined Fox Sports after two tours of duty with ESPN. Jason Whitlock, 50, is a vocal critic of what he considers the intrusion of progressive politics into sports culture and the sports media. Many of his detractors who make their feelings known on Twitter have accused him of being a sellout, typically using more vulgar terms.
“Odell Beckham Jr. is the most overhyped, overrated player in the NFL.” — @WhitlockJason and @RayLewis debate pic.twitter.com/OL5iTnnv01
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) July 31, 2017
Do you agree or disagree with Jason Whitlock that Odell Beckham Jr. is overrated and has achieved celebrity status because of his blonde hair?
[Featured Image by Julio Cortez/AP Images]