NFL star Odell Beckham Jr. made a rare public comment about his 2-year-old son during a Super Bowl week event.
Beckham exclusively spoke with PEOPLE at the athlete’s star-studded FRI&NDS Pre-Super Bowl Launch in New Orleans on Thursday, Feb. 6.
During the conversation, Beckham, who is a free agent after being waived by the Miami Dolphins in December, shared that he is focused on “figuring out my life” — especially as it pertains to his son Zydn.
“Where do I want to live? Where can my son lay his head? How do I establish a future for him?” says the wide receiver, 32, before noting he is trusting in “God’s plans.”
Beckham also opened up about what he hopes Zydn will learn from him.
“For me, I just hope he learns love,” he says. “I feel like this world is so full of hate and comparisons and jealousy and all these other things. I hope that I can instill in him everything that my father instilled in me. And for my son to have the right moral compass, because everybody’s going to go on their own journeys.
“I’m not going to be able to be there with him through every encounter. So just being able to instill the right tools in him to be a good man, respectful, morally sound, and he’ll be okay,” he continues.
Beckham welcomed Zydn in February 2022 with ex Lauren Wood, just four days after his Super Bowl victory with the Los Angeles Rams. They had initially announced the pregnancy several months earlier in a series of professional black-and-white photos shared to Wood’s Instagram that featured them cradling her baby bump.
Beckham posted photos from the maternity shoot on his Instagram a month later on Christmas day, writing, “My gift won’t be wrapped under a tree this year but I can’t wait to meet You.”
Sources confirmed to PEOPLE that the couple split in September 2023. In an October 2024 exclusive interview, Woods, 32, told PEOPLE that the pair continue to co-parent, revealing that in some ways, their new dynamic has made their bond “stronger.”
“Odell’s life is pretty chaotic, and so is mine. We just roll with the punches. We’re testing our ability to adapt hourly and I’m gonna be honest that sometimes, I don’t know if we’re doing great,” she said.
“I think every parent goes through that feeling, like, ‘Am I doing this right?’ But I do know that we’re intelligent and capable. We can adapt. I feel like it strengthens our bond, despite harbored emotions or wrongs done to each other that every relationship goes through. It’s all part of the journey,” she added.
The FRI&NDS Pre-Super Bowl Launch event featured a number of notable faces, including Jon Hamm, Shaboozey, Chance the Rapper, Jordan Love and more.
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While speaking about his new event touring platform FRI&NDS (pronounced “And Friends”), which provides a platform for entertainers, athletes and artists, Beckham said that the concept came “naturally” to him.
“I love to have a good time. Always been semi-the life of the party whether I wanted to or not. So FRI&NDS is being able to have a bunch of friends around. We actually do things that are fun,” he tells PEOPLE.
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He adds: “I feel like the world is getting repetitious. We do the same things over and over again. So to be able to put on good events for good people, it’s just amazing. You know?”
When asked about his plans for the future, the NFL champion reiterated that he’s focused on trying to enjoy the present moment.
“My biggest focus of my life right now is being present, being able to be present, be where my feet are at, enjoy the moments — because I know that more are coming. There’s going to be good days, there’s going to be bad days. So just being able to be where I’m at right now, and that’s the most important thing,” he says.
“I got a lot of good things coming,” he teases. “I won’t tell you everything, but we got some good plans.”
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