Giants' owner calls out Odell Beckham, says he's 'embarrassed' about team's season

Giants owner John Mara has been frustrated about a lot of things this season, but one thing that seems to be especially bothering him was Odell Beckham's decision to do an interview with ESPN two weeks ago.

During an interview with reporters at the NFL owners meeting on Tuesday, Mara made it clear that he would like to see Beckham do a "little less talking" going forward.

"I wish he would create the headlines by his play on the field as opposed to what he says and what he does off the field," Mara said, via ESPN.com. "I think he needs to do a little more playing and a little less talking."

During an interview with ESPN that aired on Oct. 7, Beckham basically threw Eli Manning under the bus and also wouldn't say for sure whether or not he wanted to be in New York. The Giants were so upset with the interview that they decided to fine him.

Although Mara was upset with the interview, he said he didn't personally talk to Beckham about it.

"I think enough people have spoken to him," Mara said, via Newsday.

Beckham raised a lot of eyebrows during the ESPN interview when he didn't defend Manning.

"I don't know," Beckham said when he was asked if there was an issue at quarterback. "Like I said, I feel like he's not going to get out the pocket. He's not -- we know Eli's not running it. But is it a matter of time issue? Can he still throw it, yeah, but it's been pretty safe and it's been, you know ... cool catching shallow [routes] and trying to take it to the house. But I'm, you know, I want to go over the top of somebody."

Of course, Beckham hasn't been the only person to criticize Manning this year, there's actually been a lot written and said about the quarterback's struggles in 2018 and how it might be time for him to retire. On Mara's end, he was more than willing to admit that Manning has struggled, but he also pointed out that nearly everyone on the team has been bad at times this year.

"I think when you're 1-5, it generally means that everybody needs to play better, so he's not alone," Mara said. "I still ... we still believe in him, but everybody needs to do their jobs in order for us to be successful, and right now that's not happening. I know he's the punching bag right now, but a lot of guys need to play better when you're 1-5."

Speaking of that 1-5 record, Mara definitely isn't happy about that.

"I'm still embarrassed being 1-5," Mara said. "I can't stand up here and make any excuses about that. You are what your record says you are, as a wise man once said, and there's nothing I can say to make people feel better about that. I'm suffering just as much as our fans are, probably more."

The silver lining for the Giants right now is that they're actually still in the NFC East race despite their 1-5 record. The entire division has been struggling this year and as things currently stand, the Giants are just 2.5 games behind the 3-2 Redskins for first place. If the Giants are going to make a move, now's a good time to do it and that's mainly because they'll only be playing one team that currently has a winning record over the next five weeks.

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