We Will Officially Have Josh Norman Vs ODB Round 2 On Sunday
PFT - So much for Washington not wanting to screw up the rest of the secondary by moving cornerback Josh Norman around.
Via Britt McHenry of ESPN.com, Norman will follow Giants receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. on Sunday, unless Beckham lines up in the slot. That’s a clear departure from the approach the team used in Week One against Pittsburgh, and stubbornly defended thereafter. (Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer points out that Norman followed Beckham during the notorious December 2015 game between the Panthers and Giants, which featured multiple incidents between Norman and Beckham and, eventually, a one-game suspension for Beckham.)
Why the change in philosophy by Washington, which had planned to keep Norman on one side of the defensive formation?
“We’re going to let him earn the $75 million,” an unnamed team source told McHenry.
It’s a smart move by the team, even if it shows that the organization is willing to flinch in the face of fan and media pressure. More accurately, it’s likely that Norman flinched.
As the kids say these day, it’s lit. Premier corner vs elite WR battles are few and far between in the NFL. You probably recall the bad blood these two have for each other, which stems back from last year’s game where ODB ended up cheap-shotting Norman which earned him a 1 game suspension. The trash talk continued in the off-season, with Beckham weirdly obsessed with Norman. All of this is leading up to Sunday, and it is going to be a thrill to watch.
And thank goodness the Skins are putting Norman on Odell. Week 1 was a joke watching Norman cover nobodies while Antonio Brown burned Breeland with very little safety help. Last week when Norman was on Dez he shut him down. And now this week Norman is going to follow Beckham, which is for sure going to be electric. Every single play will be broken down and dissected. Norman will make good plays on ODB, and ODB will inevitably torch Norman for a score.
Norman has been lights out so far this season, but obviously covering ODB one on one is not a walk in the park. In a league designed to help QBs and WRs, it’s no small task to shut down a guy as talented as Odell Beckham. But that’s what Norman is getting paid 75 million dollars to do, so let’s see if he can get the job done.