Giants' Odell Beckham remains absent from voluntary OTAs Thursday

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — For the third this week, New York Giants star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was absent from voluntary organized team activities, this despite an ESPN report that indicated he planned on attending Thursday.

Beckham had drawn criticism for his absence to start OTAs on Monday, when he was evidently working out with former NFL quarterback Johnny Manziel, who posted a picture of them together on social media. Manziel, a first-round pick in 2014, infamously washed out of the NFL following two tumultuous seasons with the Cleveland Browns.

"You want all your players here," Giants coach Ben McAdoo told reporters after the session when asked if the absence of Beckham and Vernon bothered him. "Especially the great ones. It's a time to bond and build chemistry. You want all your guys here, but especially the great ones. They facilitate a lot of that, but we coach the ones that are here."

When pressed further, McAdoo reiterated his response and said he had already answered the question.

Asked if he planned to attend future OTAs, Beckham told NFL Network, "no comment."

Given Beckham's importance to the Giants, the optics of his decision are poor given his apparent decision to spend time with player who is no longer in the league rather than his teammates.

But all of the Giants players made available for reporters after Thursday’s practice downplayed the absences.

“When he’s been here, we’ve gotten in great work,” receiver Brandon Marshall said of Beckham. “He’s a special, special talent. Of course, it’s always good when you have your full team there, but he’s out working hard. That’s the thing I notice about him – he’s a freak.

“He’s probably the best athlete that I have ever seen … he’s not here right now, obviously, but I know he’s handling his business and he’ll be ready when he comes in.”

Said cornerback Janoris Jenkins: “It’s not a big concern for the team.”

Beckham was also absent Tuesday.

"We all have had to grow up at different times in our lives, and I think it is time for him to do that," Giants general manager Jerry Reese said of Beckham in a press conference in January.

"He has been here for three years now and is a little bit of a lightning rod because of what he does on the football field, but the things he does off the football field, he has to be responsible for those things and we will talk through it. I know he is a smart guy, and I believe he understands that he has a responsibility being one of the faces of this franchise, and I think he will accept that responsibility."

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Beckham just signed a lucrative new shoe deal with Nike. The Giants also recently picked up the fifth-year option for their 2013 first-round pick.

Defensive end Olivier Vernon was also absent Thursday.

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Follow Lorenzo Reyes on Twitter @LorenzoGReyes

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