Freddie Kitchens starting to show concern about Odell Beckham’s absence

Cleveland Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens has not been worried about Odell Beckham Jr.’s absence from OTA’s, but that seemed to change Thursday.

Since trading for Odell Beckham Jr. in March, the Cleveland Browns have been patient and not worried about the wide receiver doing workouts on his own and away from his facility.

Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens has been calm about the situation and was confident Beckham would be able to fit right in whenever he was ready to join the team. However, that seemed to change on Thursday, the second to last day of voluntary OTA’s for the Browns.

Kitchens was asked what he hopes to see from Beckham when the 26-year-old arrives for the team’s mandatory minicamp next week, but Kitchens said that the main thing he wanted to see was Beckham himself – via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.

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"Asked what he wants to see of him next week in mandatory minicamp, Kitchens said, “I just want to see him.”What did he miss?“A lot — the offense.” – Cabot, Cleveland.com"

It was the first time Kitchens has not defended Beckham when he met with the media. Even though Kitchens said two weeks ago the team knew Beckham’s plans for workouts, it seems like he expected to see Beckham more during OTA’s.

Beckham was at the team’s facility and on the practice field for the team’s first day of OTA’s. It was only the second time Beckham was on the field with the team since joining the Browns. The wide receiver has not been on the field for any of the other eight OTA practices.

And it has not only been Beckham who has not been practicing, as Jarvis Landry, who is expected to start opposite of Beckham, has been unable to participate in some of the practices because of a minor injury. So Baker Mayfield has not been able to get much work in with his two main receivers for next season.

Although Beckham will likely be ready to go when he arrives for mandatory minicamp and training camp, it appears the Browns were hoping to see him more than they have so far. Kitchens said last week he knew it was important for Beckham to be with the team, but he wanted Beckham to be completely mentally prepared before joining the team.

As Kitchens noted Thursday, he just hopes to see Beckham at mandatory minicamp next week. The head coach may have said Beckham missed “the offense,” but it’s unlikely the team has installed a large part of the offense already, so Beckham’s absence should not result in any major problems for the Browns in 2019.