Would Claiming Odell Beckham Jr. Have Made a Difference for the 2021 Seahawks?

When you have a franchise quarterback like Russell Wilson, you should always look into ways to bolster the weapons at his disposal. The Seahawks had a rare opportunity to do just that during the middle of the 2021 season.

Following Week 9, the Browns put three-time Pro Bowl wideout Odell Beckham Jr. on waivers after a strenuous two and a half-year run. To most observers, he appeared to be past his peak and not worth the trouble after playing his way out of New York and Cleveland in a three-year stretch.

With the nature of being on waivers, the Seahawks had a chance to claim him and his $7.5 million price tag for the remainder of the season. Understandably, teams were apprehensive about taking on such a burdensome price for Beckham's services when his value as well as his character were in question.

The Rams ended up signing him as a free agent after he cleared waivers, to a frugal cap number of $850,000. Now, he is one win away from a Super Bowl title and has played a vital role in the Rams' deep run. On 48 targets since joining the list of weapons for Matthew Stafford, he has zero drops along with five touchdowns, a mark he never reached in Cleveland. Clearly, he has benefitted from a change of scenery and he may not have been the problem with the Browns after all.

The Eagles ended up snagging the last NFC Wild Card spot at 9-8. Seattle fell two games short of the seventh and final spot with a disappointing 7-10 record.

Considering the lift he provided the Rams, what if the Seahawks had bit the bullet and claimed Beckham, gifting Wilson another weapon for a second half push? Would it have made a difference in their slim hopes of making the playoffs? Putting him in the same huddle as DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett would have injected excitement throughout the team, city, and fan base. 

Let's rewind to Week 10. Beckham was available to play for the Rams at that time, while the Seahawks traveled to Lambeau Field to play the Packers. Seattle lost 17-0 in Russell Wilson's first career shutout, which was an embarrassing loss that served as foreshadowing for the disappointment soon to come.

While the final score of that game in Green Bay reads Seattle losing by three scores, fans quickly forget that the Packers led just 3-0 until midway through the fourth quarter. What if Wilson had Beckham at his disposal that day? Could they have won?

With it being Wilson's first game back, the rust was real. He made some uncharacteristically bad throws and looked out of sync. My gut says that even with Beckham, with it being Wilson's first game in over a month and Beckham trying to learn the playbook, forming anything resembling chemistry with his new quarterback would have been a very tall task indeed.

However, that game was just one big play away from swinging Seattle's direction. Unfortunately, it likely would've been too much, too soon with Wilson's return from injury to make a huge difference.

The two games to look at are the Monday Night Football matchup with the Washington Football Team and the debacle at home against the Chicago Bears.

In Washington, the Seahawks mustered just 15 points on less than 300 yards. Wilson was sharper than the matchup with the Packers, posting a 64.5 completion percentage and 110.6 passer rating. Unlike the game in Green Bay where Seattle lost by three scores, the Seahawks were one big play away from a prime time win in Landover.

Seattle's offense was 4-for-12 on third downs that night. Having Beckham available could have led to an extra few first downs and extending even just one drive could have led to the three points needed to win that game. As the game wound down, the Seahawks had a chance to tie the game with a two-point conversion, which failed. Perhaps it is successful with Beckham's elite athleticism running a route in heavy traffic in the end zone?

The loss to the Bears should not have happened. It was as embarrassing a loss as the Seahawks have ever had under Pete Carroll. Seattle just needed to make one extra play or pick up one extra first down to win. The three-time Pro Bowler could have made an impact in a game ultimately decided by one point.

The trouble is, even with two more wins, the Seahawks would have had the same record as the Eagles. However, the Eagles would've still had the tiebreaker with a better conference record in the NFC, with no head-to-head matchup. 

In all likelihood, bringing in Beckham would not have led to Seattle making the playoffs, even if it meant an additional two wins to finish above .500. It's difficult to say his presence would have resulted in three more wins, which would have been required to get into postseason play with most tiebreakers working against them thanks to early losses to Minnesota and New Orleans. And based on reports, he may not have been happy to be claimed off waivers to begin with, as he wanted the chance to pick where he played the rest of the season.

Finishing in last place in the NFC West, the Seahawks certainly had bigger holes on the roster besides wide receiver depth, including subpar play of the quarterbacks at times along with defensive breakdowns and special teams errors. While it's fun to think about Beckham catching passes from Wilson and helping lead Seattle to an extra win or two, at the end of the day, the team was more flawed than just needing another quality receiver to make a playoff run.