Odell Beckham Jr.’s stay on the Vikings’ active roster was short-lived thanks to Carson Wentz and Kirk Cousins.
Beckham was cut by Minnesota and then re-signed to its practice squad to make room for Cousins on the 53-man roster after acquiring the quarterback in a trade with the Raiders, the team announced Tuesday.
The Vikings brought back their former QB at the NFL trade deadline, sending a 2027 third-round pick to Las Vegas.
Minnesota (6-2) likely felt compelled to make the move after Wentz’s historically poor performance in a “Monday Night Football” loss to the Bills in Minnesota.
Wentz completed just 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards and two interceptions before being pulled late in the fourth quarter.
Beckham, 34, was activated for the contest but was on the field for just two snaps and was not targeted on either. It was just his fourth game this season after beginning the year with a return to the Giants, with whom he spent six seasons after being selected 12th overall in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Beckham wrote in the comments of an Instagram post that he did not see his Giants exit coming after the team cut him. He signed with the Vikings’ practice squad in early October.
He played just three games for Big Blue and did not record a catch before being cut by new head coach John Harbaugh. Beckham did not play in 2025 and has not recorded a catch in the league since Week 14 with the Dolphins during an injury-shortened 2024.
If he does get back to the Vikings’ active roster, he should have much better quarterback play than he did Monday night.
The 38-year-old Cousins, who played in Minnesota for the 2019-23 seasons, was having a strong campaign in Las Vegas, completing 64.1% of his passes for 2,340 yards with 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
