CLEVELAND, Ohio – Talking to myself about Odell Beckham Jr. and the Cleveland Browns:

QUESTION: Is Beckham complaining about not getting the ball?

ANSWER: Not really.

Q: After Sunday’s 27-13 loss to New England, he said: “I just feel like we didn’t challenge as much as we could have. I think we kind of shied away from it...We had a couple plays, but for whatever reason, we didn’t do as much challenging the matchups that we all talked about.”

A: He wanted the ball thrown his way more often. He thought that was the game plan.

Q: That still sounds like complaining to me. It was a game played mostly in a rain storm. You kept waiting for Noah to float by in the ark. He had to know it was a bad day to throw the ball.

A: He also saw the Browns having a hard time moving the ball and thought he could help.

Q: But he also said: “Whatever came my way pretty much I caught. Whatever opportunities I had, I made the most of them. But you can only control what you can control.”

A: I just don’t think this is Beckham being destructive or a bad teammate. Nearly every good receiver thinks he should be the target of more passes, especially if his team loses.

Q: Why are you making excuses for him?

A: I’m talking reality. When Beckham would scream at coaches and QBs on the sidelines in New York, that was selfish. There have been some problems with Beckham in Cleveland, but attitude is not one of them.

Q: OK, so what is the problem?

A: So far, he hasn’t fit the offense . . . or the offense doesn’t fit him.

Q: Explain.

A: Beckham is like the Browns. After seven games, so much more was expected of him . . . and them. There is no flow to his game, or the offense.

Q: Is that his fault?

A: When Browns GM John Dorsey traded for Beckham, he was convinced he had a big-play receiver who could combine with Baker Mayfield to give the Browns a high-powered offense.

Q: That’s not exactly news.

A: Big things were expected from Mayfield this season, but he is tied for the NFL lead in interceptions (12). He is the third-worst rated QB in the NFL, ahead of only Josh Rosen and Sam Darnold. It’s a huge drop from a year ago.

Q: That’s not news, either.

A: He was supposed to be better with Beckham, not worse. Freddie Kitchens was supposed to be an even more effective play-caller with Beckham. But almost everything has gone wrong for the rookie head coach.

Q: You’re blaming all that on Beckham?

A: Let’s look at some numbers. After his first seven games with the Giants last season, Beckham had 53 catches (80 targets). With the Browns, it’s 34 catches (61 targets).

Q: So he’s not the focal point of the offense as he was in New York?

A: Beckham has had more catches and targets than anyone else else on the Browns. Overall, he’s No. 14 in the NFL with those 61 targets.

Q: So he’s still an important part of the offense, right?

A: Jarvis Landry is right behind Beckham with 30 catches and 54 targets. The Browns also like to run the ball with Nick Chubb. It’s more of an equal opportunity offense.

Q: Some offense. They’ve scored 13 or fewer points in 4-of-7 games.

A: Beckham was flagged for only two penalties in his 12 games of 2018. With the Browns, he’s had six penalties (three declined).

Q: That does sound like the Browns, penalties way up.

A: According to Profootballfocus.com, he had only three drops in 12 games last season He leads the Browns with four drops. He has only one TD catch this season. He had six in 2018.

Q: Doesn’t he seem uncomfortable and uncertain on the field?

A: Exactly, just like most of the offense. I don’t know if it’s due to Beckham skipping most of the spring voluntary minicamps. Or because he played in zero preseason games and missed a fair amount of training camp because of a hip injury. Something is wrong.

Q: Wasn’t he working out with Baker Mayfield in the summer? Isn’t he close friends with Landry and receivers coach Adam Henry?

A: All of that is true.

Q: What about wearing the watch on the field, being fined for not having pants over his knees, stuff like that?

A: Not a real issue. The problem is Kitchens and his coaching staff have been unable to make this offense work. If the Browns were scoring a lot of points, it wouldn’t matter that Beckham’s production is down. Other than Chubb running the ball, about everything with the offense is worse than a year ago.

Q: What did Kitchens say about Beckham wanting the ball more?

A: At his Monday press conference, the coach said: “He got seven targets and caught five (for 55 yards). I’m not responding to that. We need to win football games.”

Q: Sounds like Kitchens is sick of talking about Beckham.

A: It’s a sore subject. Several times a week, the media asks Kitchens about getting Beckham more involved in the offense. My guess is the front office also wants to see more from Beckham. They are heavily invested in him because of the trade.

Q: How does the deal look now, Beckham to the Giants for Jabrill Peppers and a 2019 first-round draft pick?

A: Profootballfocus (PFF) rates Peppers 44th out of 50 starting safeties. He leads all safeties with 12 missed tackles. The New York Post had a positive story about Peppers, pointing out some good moments he’s had, but he’s been up and down. The Giants used the draft pick on Clemson defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. PFF rates him as the NFL’s top defensive rookie. Hard to believe he’s better than Nick Bosa, but he’s playing well.

Q: So what’s the bottom line?

A: Kitchens, Mayfield and Beckham are all tied together. All have underachieved. All have nine games left to change that. But it’s doubtful any of them thought they’d struggle like they have through the first seven games of this season.