Report: 49ers target OBJ wants to sign with team by end of month

Share

The sweepstakes for free agent Odell Beckham Jr. should be coming to an end in the next few weeks.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Saturday night, citing league sources, that Beckham Jr. wants to narrow his prospective teams in the near future and sign with a team by the end of November.

Schefter reported that the 49ers are among the teams Beckham Jr. has interest in, along with the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs. Schefter noted that while the Los Angeles Rams and Green Bay Packers also are on Beckham Jr.'s list, the fact that they might not be contenders in a few weeks could prevent them from landing the dynamic wide receiver.

The 49ers, at 4-4 entering their "Sunday Night Football" game against the Los Angeles Chargers, have been tied to Beckham Jr. for a few weeks. On Oct. 31, Schefter speculated that San Francisco was an "intriguing match" for the former Giants star.

Coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch both addressed the rumors surrounding Beckham Jr. at the beginning of November.

“We’re open to discussions with everybody. We look into everything,” Shanahan said on KNBR on Nov. 1. “You don’t have to worry about the trade deadline with him because he’s out there and he’s available. I’ve always been a fan of Odell, like I feel like most people are. He’s that good of a player.

“But I’m definitely very happy with our receiver group right now and love the receivers that we have.”

Lynch, in a conversation with NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco on Nov. 4, first joked about the idea of adding Beckham Jr. shortly after trading for Christian McCaffrey.

“How many footballs are we going to play with?” Lynch said to Maiocco with a laugh. “I’m thinking of all the weapons we’ve already talked about.”

Then Lynch said he wouldn't rule anything out.

“Look, we never say no,” Lynch told Maiocco. “We’re always looking to get better. And it’s a rarity when you have a player of that ilk and some other names out there that still might be available. And we always will look.”

On Saturday night, Schefter reported that Beckham could use free-agent contracts signed by Chris Godwin and Mike Williams last year with average annual values of $20 million as a baseline for a prorated deal. If he signs for the final six games of the season, Beckham Jr. could make around $5 million for the remainder of 2022.

Per Over The Cap, the 49ers currently have $6,566,647 in effective salary cap space.

Beckham Jr. is returning from a torn ACL sustained during the Rams' Super Bowl win over the Cincinnati Bengals in February and he is close to being cleared for all activities.

RELATED: Irvin believes OBJ will decide between 49ers, Cowboys

The 30-year-old receiver thrived with the Rams after joining them midseason last year, catching 27 passes for 305 yards in eight games. He also caught five touchdown passes during that span.

Despite coming off a major knee injury, Beckham Jr. should give a contender an instant offensive boost once he signs a contract. If he decides to join the 49ers, an already dangerous offense could become practically unstoppable.

Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast

Contact Us