Bills players call out Odell Beckham Jr. for throwing punches during game

Since breaking onto the NFL scene last season, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham has become one of the stars of the league. In the eyes of some of his colleagues, that success has gone to his head. According to Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News, Buffalo Bills players complained that Beckham threw punches after the whistle when the two teams played on Sunday.

Multiple Bills reported Beckham getting upset during the game and responding with his fists. Cornerback Stephon Gilmore went on the record about the receiver’s behavior.

“It’s kind of like you’re playing your little brother and he gets mad at you for being too physical with him,” Gilmore said. “He’s a prima donna. He feels like he’s on top of the world and nobody’s supposed to do anything to him.”

Beckham, who has wowed fans with eye-popping one-handed catches, is off to the best-career start for a wide receiver in NFL history. But linebacker Preston Brown, who drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty during his dealings with Beckham, was unimpressed with the second-year receiver.

“They were doing everything in the book they could to try to get a free 15,” Brown said. “They would say anything they thought would rile us up. Words usually don’t do anything, but when they start swinging at you -- they did that a lot. They were throwing a lot of cheap shots.”

While not every claim Bills players made could be confirmed, Beckham’s punch of safety Duke Williams was caught on the broadcast:

“A guy like that,” Williams said, “you expect him to be a stand-up guy but I guess it is a part of his game. He likes to throw cheap shots here and there and gets away with it. I guess it’s his thing ... Right in front of the referee and he threw a jab at me and ran behind his teammates. He ran away. I’m just like, ‘Wow. That’s crazy.’”

Drawing flags indeed appears to have been part of New York’s game plan. Head coach Tom Coughlin told his team that Buffalo would beat themselves with penalties if given the chance. The Bills ultimately committed 17 for a total of 135 yards.

This isn’t the first time Beckham’s “golden boy” status has become a problem, either. During the offseason, Giants teammates reportedly teased the receiver about sitting out of practices with perceived minor injuries.

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