Odell Beckham Says He Almost Retired In 2017 After Breaking His Ankle Because The Game Of Football Was Ruined For Him

[Source] - "I thought about not playing no more. Like, this is not really it for me."

Odell Beckham says he bottomed out so hard after breaking his ankle with the NY Giants in 2017 ... he damn-near retired, saying the game just wasn't fun for him anymore.

"I said this in college, I said, 'I fear the day that they make this game a business and not what I love,'" Beckham said in an enlightening round-table interview with Victor Cruz, Cam Newton and Todd Gurley this week. "And when I seen that for the first time ... after breaking my ankle, like, I thought about not playing no more ... they've ruined the game of football for me a little bit."

Alright, I was always an Odell fan on the Giants as a Giants fan. I defended him. I always said he was a freak athlete that got a bad reputation because of his personality. But hearing this? This makes me happy to not have to defend him anymore. I don't want a dude that is ready to retire because it became more of a business and not a game.

Uh yeah dude, the NFL is a business. You may be playing a game, but it's a business. What the fuck did you think was happening? I get that you breaking your ankle, because it was a disgusting break, sucks. But it's not like that all of a sudden made the NFL a business. 

Oh, don't worry though. He's back to being normal! 

But, Beckham says he feels he's got it figured out heading into his second season with the Cleveland Browns this year ... and he's hopeful he gets the opportunity to show he's still one of the game's elite.

"I understand the game now," Beckham says. "That's why you see the [bleached-blonde haircut] is back. There's nothing you could tell me."

He's 100% a freak talent. But he's also brutal to have on your team when shit is going bad. He'll lose his shit. He hates not having the ball. He pouts and throws shit under the bus. When things are winning, everything is good. But the moment things go bad - which in Cleveland, well, we know the deal there - good luck defending him if he's on your team. 

Can't wait to see how happy he is when the Browns are 5-11 again.