Beckham getting cloer to playing

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — When Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. had to miss last week’s regular-season opener, the pain he felt might just have rivaled the pain that went along with the sprained ankle he’s been nursing for almost a month now.

“I want to play that bad,” he said when peppered Wednesday with questions regarding his health and his possible availability for Monday night. “I’m working my best to get to 100, so once I do get there, there won’t be any more problems. At the moment, we don’t know. We’re just kind of day-by-day. It’s getting better, so we’re going in the right direction.”

Beckham said he’s been receiving round-the-clock treatment — so much so that he joked the training staff must be growing tired of him.

The treatment seems to be working as on Thursday, Beckham was able to get out on the field to practice on a limited basis.

“Probably the best I’ve felt, so I’m going in the right direction,” he said with a dry smile.

Whether he actually plays, is another story. Beckham, who has been very vague about the actual nature of his injury, let it slip that his is “a six-to-eight-week thing,” adding, “Unfortunately, as much as I was trying my hardest to get out there, it just wasn’t enough time.”

Further complicating his status are concerns that if he returns to action too soon, he could potentially undo all the progress he’s made in rehab.

“Yeah. Pretty much. It’s like when I had the hamstring issue (in his rookie season) and you come back and you don’t know if it’s too early or not and you get reinjured again. You set yourself back for another five to six weeks.

“I don’t have that luxury right now. So, it’s a matter of getting to a point where you know you’re confident and you can go and you don’t have to worry about it. Until that moment comes, we’re being smart with it, corrective and staying on top of it.”

The plan, Beckham said, is to continue his aggressive rehab schedule and hope for the best.

“I think it’s just with the training staff and figuring out – it’s like that last step – can you burst?” he said when asked what needs to happen before he gets the green light.

“You can do all this, but there’s the little rotation and it’s the little movements that irk it a little bit and if it’s still hurting, the doctors are going to hold you. So, right now, I’m just trying to find a way to get through it. I have another long week going up until Monday.”

But he admits it won’t be easy not knowing how he’ll feel come Monday pregame.

“It’s a matter of patience, and patience is a hard thing at this point in time in my life,” he said. “You want it so bad and it’s like, it’s right there in front of you and it’s just you have to wait. You have to wait until you’re good to go. It’s a tough process. I’m trying to stay a positive as I can about the situation.”