Beckham loses it, and so do Giants on final-play field goal

Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman, after Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. turned into a cheap shot artist Sunday afternoon.

“Did you see the punches thrown?” He was seething as he spoke. He said if Beckham wants to “dance and prance around like a ballerina”, he should not try to be something he isn’t – by which Norman meant not like the blue collar toughness Norman thinks the Panthers possess but Beckham does not. “You all saw it”.

Antonio Brown caught 16 passes for 189 yards and two scores as Pittsburgh (9-5) moved into the AFC’s second wild-card spot by dominating the NFL’s best defense after spotting the Broncos (10-4) a 17-point lead.

The Panthers defensive star agitated Beckham throughout the game by jamming him at the line of scrimmage and battering him with hands to his face and hits under his facemask. Immediately following the contest, Norman had a few choice words on the Giants wide receiver according to CBS sportscaster Steve Overmyer.

From there, the intensity began to boil over. “He came back and was hunting, and it was just, like, malicious in every way”. Josh Norman versus Odell Beckham, Jr. was the marquee match up that fans paid money to see. Yet, Beckham said he “didn’t know what the flag was for”. He was not tossed but his actions might’ve warranted it. Beckham caught a 14-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 35-35, capping a two-minute, 31-second drive. He picked up three unnecessary roughness penalties, which could be a first for a 198-pound receiver. “I know it’s not ideal, certainly a lot of things we can do better, but it’s good to be 12-2”. “It was just insane, man”.

After a sluggish start, the New York Knicks regrouped and cruised to a relatively stress-free 107-91 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday, with Carmelo Anthony scoring 13 of his 27 points during the opening quarter.

Whatever the reason, Beckham had no business being in the game after a flying helmet-to-helmet shot at the conclusion of a play in the third quarter. To reach Super Bowl L in Santa Clara-I’m not doing this Super Bowl 50 nonsense; unlike the National Football League, I’m not afraid of a Roman L-the Panthers may have to get through the talented Arizona Cardinals or maybe the Seattle Seahawks or whatever freaky object the NFC East regurgitates up to the top of its division. Most of the time it appeared Beckham was the instigator. “The guy ran 15 yards down the field… he came back and was hunting”. The most egregious non-call was shortly after he dropped that would-be TD pass. He slowed up on coverage, initiated a helmet to helmet blow to Norman, then threw Norman to the ground before the two wrestled around. And it wasn’t just Norman that was affected.

“It’s always a crush to lose”, Coughlin said.

“We are out there playing football, we are competing”, Beckham said.

Tight end Greg Olsen shed some light on the challenging circumstances.

“Well, that just goes to show you again he lost his composure”, Coughlin said. “It’s what we’ve been dealing with all season as far as finishing games”.

The Giants were mounting a comeback and riding a wave of momentum.

“I really like the battle with him and Josh, it was like Floyd and Pacquiao”, Giants cornerback Prince Amukamara said.

“He should’ve”, Norman said when asked if Beckham should have been ejected. “I’ve got to be stronger right there, regardless of a push-off or whatever”. Norman watched from the sideline as Graham Gano’s 43-yard goal sailed through the uprights as time expired. The resilient and resourceful Panthers, no matter the challenge or the particulars, find ways to win. We didn’t do better right away, but after we had scored the second touchdown, I thought the whole team kind of caught fire and a momentum cam e back and we created some opportunities for ourselves, we got some turnovers and got the ball in the end zone.