Odell Beckham Jr. on COVID-19 quarantine: ‘was probably the best thing that ever happened’
Odell Beckham Jr. feels comfortable in Cleveland, showing a newfound perspective on life and his status as both a football player and a celebrity.
In a 17-minute interview with Maverick Carter for Uninterrupted, the LeBron James-founded digital platform, Beckham opened up about owning a house in suburban Cleveland (where the video was shot), having a steady, stable girlfriend and coming to terms with where he’s at in life.
“Growing up the way I did, I just never had a steady home,” Beckham said. “It was always on the move, on the move, on the move. So to have a home and this is finally my first home, it’s definitely a good feeling. You have all your belongings in here, it’s a safe place.”
Beckham concluded to Carter,
“I feel good about it.”
Beckham also opened up about the unexpected upside of being quarantined with nothing really to do during the early portion of the COVID-19 pandemic. With no football to focus on, Beckham and his girlfriend had a lot of time to evaluate what was important to them beyond his playing career with the Browns. It was a moving experience for the polarizing wideout.
“It was the first time I had ever felt at such a peaceful place,” Beckham told Carter. “They had football taken out of the equation for me. I just felt like, it was a weight lifted off. I’m just chilling … quarantine for me, as funny as it sounds, was probably the best thing that ever happened to me.”
In the wide-ranging interview, Beckham addresses his sizeable donation to the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of the George Floyd murder.
“I always felt like football was a platform, that it was never going to define me,” Beckham said, noting the absence of football really allowed him to see that more clearly. He also noted he’s never voted in his life, which is why his pregame “Vote” shirt was such a big deal to Beckham.
