Mike Preston: Year away from the game might have given Ravens WR Odell Beckham Jr. a new perspective | COMMENTARY

There was talk of Odell Beckham Jr. arriving in Baltimore on Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti’ s private jet, and that his motorcade to The Castle would rival that of any president. Middle linebacker Roquan Smith was quickly anointed the leader of the defense soon after he arrived in a trade from the Chicago Bears on Oct. 31 because of his past performance.

There was talk of Odell Beckham Jr. arriving in Baltimore on Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti’s private jet, and that his motorcade to The Castle would rival that of any president.

But there was a different side of Beckham at his introductory news conference Thursday. He was calm, secure, engaging and at times humorous, a far cry from what we’ve seen on TV or in recent body cam footage.

That Beckham was loud, obnoxious, selfish and fined several times by the NFL for touchdown celebrations, improper game attire and various unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

But maybe Beckham, at age 30, has matured, and could become a leader on offense. Middle linebacker Roquan Smith was quickly anointed the leader of the defense soon after he arrived in a trade from the Chicago Bears on Oct. 31 because of his past performance.

Can they get that from Beckham? Who knows, but the first step is acknowledging past mistakes, which Beckham did Thursday.

“I’ll be honest, I’ve made mistakes in my past, but who hasn’t as a young man who’s got the entire world spotlighted on him?” he said, referencing his rise to stardom with the New York Giants. “Again, I always tell people [that] when I was out there making one-handed catches, I wasn’t holding the camera and pointing at it [while] making the catch, saying, ‘Look at me.’ I’m not pointing any of you all out, but I think the stories came more from over there, and then headlines came titles and, ‘Diva, drama.’

“But everyone who has ever met me, as far as a teammate — when I’m in the room with people, it’s completely different. I definitely think that I could have done some things differently, as a young man, but we all live and learn, and we grow through our mistakes.”

It’s tough to play in New York, and even tougher when you’re a rookie making perhaps the greatest touchdown catch in the history of the league with a one-hander over Dallas cornerback Brandon Carr on “Sunday Night Football.”

It’s understandable why his head couldn’t fit into a two-car garage.

But on Thursday, Beckham appeared humbled. That can happen to a player when he misses an entire season because of surgery on a torn ACL. They miss those paychecks and the big crowds. There are no touchdown celebrations.

Sunday afternoons became ho-hum events.

“I had to sit back and watch everybody have fun last year and do back flips in the end zone and hit ‘the griddy’ [dance],” Beckham said, “and I was just licking at the chops wanting to be back out there. Football isn’t who I am, but it’s a big part of me, because I could have played a bunch of other sports, and I sacrificed a lot to play this one.

“I’m excited, but I’m also very determined and hungry. I really want this badly.”

Beckham seems sincere, but it’s hard to gauge the maturity part. You can’t get that body cam footage out of your mind when he was being escorted off an American Airlines plane in Miami last November after being involved in a verbal argument with a passenger.

Yet on Thursday, while speaking, Beckham always kept an eye on his little son, Zydn, and that was telling. Children can change people and offer them a new perspective.

This isn’t to say Beckham is a new man. Top receivers are divas. They all want the ball and show their frustrations when they don’t get enough touches. During games, Beckham has always been emotional and impulsive, and that can be a problem when not channeled properly.

He’ll irritate coach John Harbaugh several times during the season because star players have their own little ways of doing things. When safety Rod Woodson and wide receiver Anquan Boldin were with the Ravens, they had their own stretching routines.

Outside linebacker Terrell Suggs never shut up during practices and safety Ed Reed did whatever he wanted to do, depending on his mood that day.

With free agents like Woodson and tight end Shannon Sharpe, you could tell immediately they were going to have some type of positive impact in Baltimore, but safety Earl Thomas III was strange from the first day he showed up.

It was apparent Beckham was coached up by the Ravens’ public relations staff before talking, but that did little because he is intelligent and outspoken. He was smart enough to stay away from discussing the team’s contract negotiations with star quarterback Lamar Jackson, and said he came to Baltimore primarily because it was the right fit.

Wrong. It was the money. No other team was going to pay him $15 million guaranteed. Pro players play for two reasons: the money and a Super Bowl ring, and Beckham got his ring with the Los Angeles Rams.

The Ravens are taking an uncharacteristic gamble with Beckham, and he can add to his impressive resume. In eight seasons, he has already been named a two-time All-Pro and a three-time Pro Bowl selection. He has 531 career receptions for 7,367 yards and 56 touchdowns.

In Los Angeles, Cleveland and New York, his teammates have spoken fondly of him, but he demands the ball. That didn’t work in his previous stops, even though the knee injury forced him out of Los Angeles.

But his perspective might have changed a little with some recent events in his life.

We’re going to find out soon if perception is still reality in the life of Odell Beckham Jr.

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