TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 28: Phil Simms presents the "FedEx Air & Ground NFL Players of the Year" awards during a press conference at the Convention Center on January 28, 2009 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

The Super Bowl MVP firmly believes in a contract extension for Odell Beckham Jr., and says the New York Giants should do it sooner rather than later.

There are 11 Sundays left until the New York Giants return to regular-season NFL action. Right now, another number 11 is taking the time to comment on whether the current face of the franchise will be on the field for not just that Sunday, but for many Sundays to come.

Speaking to Paul Schwartz of the New York Post, former quarterback and two-time Super Bowl champion Phil Simms firmly revealed himself to be in favor an Odell Beckham Jr. contract extension, as the polarizing receiver is entering the final year of his original NFL deal inked in 2014.

“Pay that man his money,” Simms said per Schwartz. “He is one of the best weapons on offense I’ve seen in the NFL in a long time. Antonio Brown is great, but he’s a different type of player. So is Julio Jones. I just look at Odell Beckham Jr. and, man, I don’t know what to say.”

Simms, who served as the top analyst for CBS from 1998-2016 and continues to be a co-host of Inside the NFL on Showtime, remarked on how important Beckham is to the Giants’ offensive success. Further elaborating, Simms believes that Beckham’s unique skillset makes a long-term deal crucial as the Giants go into the future.

“When you talk about Odell, you can say, ‘They double cover him,’ but you really can’t make people understand what it really means and how it makes life easy for calling plays and designing plays,’’ Simms said. “In this day and age there’s so many formations and so many other things, they want to get Odell Beckham Jr. the ball, they’re gonna find a way to get him the ball. I don’t care what the defense does.’’

Little progress has been made in getting Beckham the extension Simms believes he deserves. The reluctance on the Giants’ end is almost understandable for the time being, as the team may still be feeling wary about the status of Beckham’s ankle, which was injured in the team’s October loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, keeping him out for the remainder of the year.

“It’s always a gamble,” Simms said per Schwartz. “You want to win, you got to gamble. Nobody knows him better than they do. I’ve never heard a teammate or run into any of his teammates who ever tell me anything bad about him. He makes the Giants really relevant. He’s one of the big names in the NFL. Old-timers and writers look at his antics and this and all that. We had a guy who had some antics, too. We put up with him, and it worked out pretty well.”

Simms is more than likely referring to former teammate, linebacker, and fellow Giants legend Lawrence Taylor. Beckham’s supposed rap sheet comes nowhere close to matching Taylor’s, but the comparison, fair or not, has been made.

Simms’ comments, however, indicate he’s willing to look past it. He also advises the Giants to get the deal done as soon as possible.

“You need zero distractions (at training camp),’’ he said. “You want him on your team, you know what he is and you know you’re all-in this year. All right, so go all-in. You got to go all-in and that means you got to get Odell Beckham Jr. signed and not make it a big part of the whole offseason story on every TV show I have to watch. So get it over with.’’

Giants veterans report to training camp on July 25. Rumors surfaced over the weekend that Beckham may hold out of training camp until a new deal is struck, (despite Beckham claiming he would not) but neither Beckham or his team have commented on these reports.

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