FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Not too many people know New York Giants star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. as well as Duke Riley.

Riley, a linebacker and third-round draft pick of the Atlanta Falcons, was a high school rival and good friend of Beckham's in New Orleans and was teammates with Beckham for a season at LSU. The day after his first NFL mandatory minicamp, Riley jumped on a plane to New York to join his good friend at Beckham's second annual youth football camp.

When asked about the scrutiny Beckham has faced for his actions on and off the football field, Riley was quick to support his close friend.

"He has some emotional moments, but, hey, that's just the type of person he is," Riley said of Beckham. "He has so much care for the game, like, people don't even understand. He has so much emotion because he loves the game. He's type of person that he doesn't care if he died on the field. And that's the same with me. That's why I respect him as a player and as a brother."

Riley considers Beckham like family.

"Man, we used to live in the same house in New Orleans," Riley said. "In high school, he used to always come over and stay over the night, basically for weeks. He calls my momma 'momma' and I call his 'momma.' We're so close. It got to the point where people would see me and be like, 'Why O ain't with you?' It still gets to that point where people are like, 'Where's Odell at? Where's Odell at?' It's kind of crazy that he's blown up like he has."

Riley hopes to establish his own identity by adding more speed and playmaking ability to the Falcons' linebacker group. He credited Beckham for putting him in position to be drafted in the first place.

"I had a situation my junior year [at LSU] going into my senior year, I was like 215 [pounds] and they were like, 'You need to gain weight, you need to gain weight,'" Riley explained. "O came to the spring game and he was like, 'What they talking about? What they say you need to work on?' I told him they wanted me to work on my weight and some other things. He was like, 'Come stay with me the whole month of May.'

"So I went to New York and stayed with him the whole month, and he flew his trainer out there and we worked. I gained like 15-20 pounds. He put me on a good meal plan. He did all that stuff for me because my family always took care of him. My parents and his parents carpooled to every LSU game when we were together. That's how close we is."

Riley plans to train with Beckham in Los Angeles throughout the rest of the summer before he reports to Falcons' training camp (July 26). Asked if Beckham has offered any advice on handling the media, Riley said, "Just everything. Just be positive about it and don't get too caught up in it. Basically you just have to watch what you say and what you do."