Jordan Raanan, ESPN Staff Writer 7y

Odell Beckham Jr.'s Nike deal shows his Giant value

It doesn't matter if Odell Beckham Jr. checks in at 5-foot-11 in a room full of Giants. He's always the biggest guy in the room with his personality, talent and fame.

The New York Giants know this by now. They've seen what Beckham has grown into over the past three years. This isn't Eli Manning with his corporate appeal. This isn't even Michael Strahan during his playing days.

Beckham, 24, is a cultural phenomenon of the likes that they have never seen before. His new Nike deal is evidence. It's the largest shoe deal ever given to an NFL player. Beckham will make in excess of $5 million per year and become a massive part of the shoe powerhouse's global marketing branding.

"It was a long process," Beckham's agent, Zeke Sandhu, told ESPN. "This proved he's an icon."

In case they forgot, it also reinforced what the Giants have on their hands. They have a marketing machine, a player whose face is recognizable despite wearing a helmet on the field. Beckham has endorsement deals with powerhouses such as Nike, Dunkin Donuts and Head & Shoulders. He's always near the top of NFL jersey sales.

It's all possible because the Giants have one of the best receivers in football. Beckham has made three Pro Bowls in three years, and his 288 catches are tied for the most in his first three seasons. He's scored 35 touchdowns in those three years.

But it's more than that. It's his flair. His style. His appeal. Combined with his prodigious talents, it makes him worth a ton to the corporate world in addition to the Giants.

Soon, the Giants are going to have to sit at the negotiating table and pay Beckham what he's worth as a football player and "icon." It's going to be expensive.

But what the Nike deal reiterated is that -- barring extenuating circumstances -- Beckham won't be going anywhere. He's too valuable to the team with his ability to sell merchandise and attract crowds. He makes the Giants relevant even when they're not (see: 2014-15). Everyone wants to watch Odell Beckham. Everyone wants a piece of Odell Beckham.

As things stand, Beckham is on the final year of the original four-year rookie contract he signed after being the 12th overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft. The Giants, however, have already exercised a fifth-year option that has him locked up through the 2018 season. They then have the option of keeping him in New York for another season or two under the franchise tag, which would pay him handsomely. However, it risks making him angry that the team would be unwilling to commit long term to such a special talent and marketing machine that is allowing the Giants to rake in the money.

This season, Beckham is slated to make $1.8 million from the Giants. That is less than half what he will pocket from Nike.

So the time is coming for Beckham to cash in on the football side as well, and the Giants can't let him go. When Beckham walks the streets, adults and kids flock to him. He once told me of a story two years ago about going to the mall in Arizona. This was after his rookie season, where he burst onto the scene with "The Catch."

Beckham had the intention of going shopping almost 3,000 miles from where the bright lights of the big city where he works. As he maneuvered around the mall, kids started to follow. The group grew until it became a crowd, and a distraction. Everybody wanted a piece of the budding superstar.

That was two years ago. Since then, the mystique (for better or worse) and persona has only grown. Beckham has performed on the field while also throwing tantrums on the sideline, punching holes into walls and going on a boat trip to Miami a week before a playoff game. There is the good and the bad.

This is part of the package. Beckham is football star and tabloid fodder. You either love him or you hate him. Regardless, you can't get enough of him.

Nike saw this. The Giants surely do, too. Their time to open the vault is coming soon, and they should know it's going to be expensive.

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