With Malik Nabers’ availability to start the 2026 season increasingly uncertain, there continues to be speculation about a potential reunion between the New York Giants and Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham, though, is far from the only wide receiver remaining in the free agent pool.
Here are some other options for the Giants to consider if they want to add to their wide receiver room.
Deebo Samuel
Samuel, 30, is not quite the all-around receiving and rushing weapon he was a few seasons ago, but he is still a productive
player. He caught 72 passes for 727 yards (10.1 yards per catch) and five touchdowns last season for the Washington Commanders.
Maybe Samuel and third-round pick Malachi Fields are similar, but if Nabers is going to miss time the Giants could use the help.
DeAndre Hopkins
The 34-year-old Hopkins seems like an unlikely target for the Giants, but he did play 17 games for Harbaugh with the Ravens last season. Hopkins, though, had just 22 receptions.
Gabe Davis
The Giants have flirted with signing Davis before, and bringing him to New Jersey might have seemed like a more logical move when Brian Daboll was still the team’s head coach. That, of couse, because Daboll was offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills when Davis caught 70 passes for 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns over the first two seasons of his NFL career.
With Joe Schoen remaining as Giants general manager, though, Davis still has a Bills connection with New York. After four productive seasons with the Bills, Davis has caught only 32 passes combined for the Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars the past two seasons.
Davis, though, is still only 27 years old. The question with the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Davis is health. He is coming off a torn ACL after tearing a meniscus in 2024, and seems unlikely to be available at the beginning of the season. That might again make Davis to the Giants unlikely.
Sterling Shepard
Wouldn’t this be fun? Shepard was expected to retire after the 2023 season, his eighth with the Giants. He decided, though, to join Baker Mayfield with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Shepard had two productive seasons, catching a total of 71 passes.
If the 33-year-old wants to continue to play, maybe it could be Shepard who returns to finish his career with the Giants rather than Beckham.
James Proche
Proche has only 34 receptions in a six-year career, but he was drafted by Harbaugh and the Ravens in 2020 (Round 6) and spent three seasons with Baltimore. He has punt and kickoff return experience, which could add value.
JuJu Smith-Schuster
Smith-Schuster is a useful player who doesn’t turn 30 until November. If you are looking for someone who can help your offense until Nabers gets healthy you can do a lot worse. Smith-Schuster has 481 receptions in a nine-year career, 53.4 per season.
