OBJ injury prone?

When the Browns traded for Odell Beckham Jr., he arrived in Cleveland with a fanfare reserved for only the greats.

He is considered by many pundits and observers of the National Football League landscape to be one of the most lethal and dangerous weapons in the game. A great addition to quarterback Baker Mayfield’s arsenal.

But Beckham also arrived with a red flag, one that warned to be very careful of this young man’s health. After five seasons of the NFL wars with the New York Giants, the wide receiver has missed 21 games due to injuries, 16 in the last two seasons.

A high ankle sprain, suffered in the 2017 exhibition opener against the Browns and a subsequent ankle fracture when he tried to come back too soon, limited him to only four games that season.

Last season, a bruised quadriceps after a Philadelphia defender leg-whipped him cut his season short at 12 games as he was on his way to putting up career-high numbers.

He missed the first four games of his rookie season (2014) with hamstring issues, but returned to play in every game (except one while serving a suspension) for the next three seasons, during which he put up phenomenal statistics.

When he is on the field, great things eventuate. But how often can Browns fans expect to see his greatness on display? He has missed the equivalent of one full season the last two years.

Now comes word that Beckham has a bruised hip, which has been reported on the Internet as a hip pointer, which the club has denied. According to UPMC.com, a hip pointer is a deep bruise to the bone on the upper outside of the hip called the iliac crest. It is accompanied by bruising and swelling.

Coach Freddie Kitchens has downplayed the news. ”He’s got a little bit of something going on, but we expect him back pretty soon,” he said following the club’s joint practice Wednesday with the Indianapolis Colts in Indiana. Pretty soon is a vague way of saying, “I really don’t know.”

Which might mean Beckham, who sat out the exhibition opener against the Washington Redskins, won’t see action at least until the Aug. 23 exhibition in Tampa against the Buccaneers. Whether he’ll be able to practice between now and then is not known.

It all depends on the severity of the affected area. If it is, indeed, a hip pointer, it is not to be taken lightly and generally is not the kind of on injury that heals in days. When the point of the hip is bruised and becomes painful, rest and anti-inflammatory medication are recommended to alleviate the discomfort.

Recovery time, again depending on the severity of the injury, is usually anywhere from one to three weeks, longer if the pain is severe enough and lingers.

All of which means Beckham, at best, will play only two quarters (if that) against the Bucs. That’s all he will have in the bank (he will not play in the meaningless fourth exhibition) as he prepares for the beginning of the regular season.

That, of course, assumes the hip injury will not prevent him from starting. Even so, with just those two quarters of game action, it’s hard to believe he and Mayfield will have their timing down.

The Browns, already down Antonio Callaway for four games, cannot afford to have their star receiver miss the beginning of the season. If that were the case, the club’s top two receivers beginning the season would be Jarvis Landry and Rashard Higgins.

It does, however, conjure up the notion that Beckham just might be injury prone, given his lengthy absences the last two seasons.

One more thing . . .

The latest depth chart lists Austin Corbett as the backup at center. His name no longer appears at either guard position. Yes, the chart is unofficial and could change between now and the season opener.

But the fact Corbett’s name has disappeared at guard this late into training camp and so close to the beginning of the season indicates he might not be the player the Browns thought they drafted at the top of round two in the 2017 NFL lottery.

Bringing in renowned offensive line coach James Campen does not seem to have helped. The only thing that can help is if the Browns either release or trade incumbent center JC Tretter so Corbett can start, but that’s not going to happen because it would weaken a line that is average at best right now.

Eric Kush seems to have a stranglehold on right guard. Any slippage there, however, impacts the offensive line as a whole. After Kush, the quality drops to the talents of Kyle Kalis, Drew Forbes, Willie Wright and Bryan Witzmann, and the latter two are on the roster bubble.