EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Odell Beckham Jr. has been like a child staring out the window while his friends play outside. He’s just not allowed to join them, at least not yet.

Beckham is rehabbing a broken ankle suffered in the New York Giants' Week 5 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers that ended a disappointing season that never really got started. He also saw his ankle/leg bend in the wrong direction during a preseason game against the Cleveland Browns, an injury that cost him the opener and part of Week 2.

Not surprisingly the Giants' season without Beckham, their best player, has been an unrelenting mess. He remains tied for second with three touchdowns on the now 2-11 team, despite playing in just four games.

For most of the past three months, Beckham has been subjected to zooming around the Quest Diagnostic Training Center in East Rutherford on a scooter before heading home in a boot. It wasn’t until a week or two ago that he finally ditched the boot and was seen in the Giants’ weight room working out in sneakers.

Consider it progress for an NFL star whose season ended prematurely while he was trying to make a catch on a high throw early in the year.

Beckham has been around, along with fellow wide receivers Brandon Marshall and Dwayne Harris -- all injured in the same game -- trying to get right. They didn’t head home or out of state to train and rehab, as some players do. They all remained in New Jersey, close to the team and under the watchful eye of their medical and training staffs.

The injured trio still mingles and talks with teammates, just not on the field. Wide receiver Roger Lewis said it’s not uncommon to see Beckham in the trainers’ room or weight room staring out the northern windows while they’re outside practicing.

“Half the time, he’s sitting there watching,” said Lewis, who talks to Beckham regularly and still takes advice from the Giants star. “I know he misses it and stuff like that.”

Beckham and the Giants’ wide receivers still talk and cross paths. He’s constantly chirping in their ears before and after treatment, trying to get laughs and smiles with his bubbly personality.

He can be an asset, too.

“Dream it. Visualize it. Live it.” That has been a favorite motivational line of Beckham’s this season.

Beckham has also been making progress himself. Physically, he might be in better shape than when the injury occurred. The Giants have said they expect him to return to his previous form, and co-owner John Mara said he “certainly” expects Beckham to be part of their future.

Of course, the new general manager and head coach will have a say in that. The Giants fired general manager Jerry Reese and head coach Ben McAdoo last week, this not long after benching quarterback Eli Manning -- who eventually returned to the starting lineup.

Beckham has been relatively quiet. He hasn’t addressed the media in a news conference since the injury but is expected to do so when the season ends.

Several weeks back, Beckham described himself as “doing great.” With plenty of time before the start of next season, there is no need for public timetables. That is something the Giants and Beckham have tried to avoid.

He will be back for the start of next season, with the hope that his ankle will have no long-term effects on his performance.

“Not that I thought he would be doing bad, but he’s kind of doing better than I thought he would be,” punter and close friend Brad Wing said. “I knew this would rock him a little bit, and I think he’s handled it great.

“Physically, I think he’s better than they thought he would be, and I think the same for his mental part.”

Beckham has been forced to keep himself busy. He debuted his signature lifestyle shoe -- the Nike SF AF-1 Mid “OBJ” -- late last month. He sat next to Magic Johnson at a New York Knicks-Los Angeles Lakers game earlier this week.

It wasn’t until last Sunday, with the boot and scooter in his past, that Beckham made his return to the sideline at MetLife Stadium, in street clothes. He watched his Giants lose 30-10 to the Dallas Cowboys, but not without unintentionally attracting plenty attention.

Wide receiver Sterling Shepard said he could hear fans yelling for Beckham most of the game. Beckham was trying his best to help his teammates rather than causing a distraction.

“He helped this past Sunday when he was at the game just being down there,” Shepard said “Telling me to be patient, just control what you can control. He was in my ear a lot.

“It kind of reminded me of game day when he’s in there.”

For now, he’s not. That is shelved until next year.

Beckham is still part of the team, even if it’s in a peripheral manner. He still pops into the wide receiver room occasionally and appears in the locker room. It’s the best he can do to stay involved when he can’t contribute on the field.

“He still feels very much part of this team,” Wing said. “I know he can’t wait to get back. And not just playing football, but being part of the team. The locker room stuff -- I think he misses that the most.”