WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.VA. — Malik Nabers did not do a lot on Wednesday during the first practice of New York Giants training camp. Nabers took part in some wide receiver agility drills, then ran a few routes.
Every bit that that Nabers, coming back from a torn ACL that cost him most of last season, did on the field was an encouraging sign for the Giants.
Nabers, as has been well-documented, had two surgeries to repair the ACL. The fact that the Giants did not place the 23-year-old on the Physically
Unable to Perform (PUP) list meant that he could get on the practice field at The Greenbrier Sports Performance Center from Day 1.
Nabers was not wearing a knee brace during his time on the field Wednesday afternoon.
“It was great,” head coach John Harbaugh said of having Nabers on the field. “He looked good.”
Quarterback Jaxson Dart worked little with Nabers last season. Dart was the backup quarterback while Nabers worked almost exclusively with then-starter Russell Wilson. Dart said Wednesday that “it’s huge” to have Nabers on the field, even in a limited capacity.
“I have a quarter, and one week, really, of reps with him last year,” Dart said. “So any time that we’re able to just have communication, have dialogue between each other, watch tape, which we’ve done a lot, just communication throughout this offseason, which I think has been really good for us.
“Trying to get those reps before he’s 100%, and I think that that will help mold our relationship into what we want it to be. He’s obsessed with this game, and he’s attacking it the right way.”
Dart and Nabers even spent a few minutes post-practice playing catch before Dart’s media session.
Harbaugh said there is no exact plan for Nabers, who caught a franchise record 109 passes for 1,204 yards as a rookie in 2024.
“Next will be tomorrow,” Harbaugh said. “We’ll see where he’s at … How it feels. How it responds … We’ll just take it one day at a time.”
Harbaugh said there is no definitive date when the Giants think Nabers will be ready for game action.
“We’ll take it one day at a time. We’ll meet the circumstances where we find him every single day. Maybe he’ll get way ahead. Maybe he won’t. You can’t really put a timetable on it exactly, I don’t think.
“Just see where it goes. Because we want him to be at his best. So when he’s ready to be at his best, he’ll be at his best. If you work hard every day, the body’s amazing. He’s been doing it. That’s really what matters.”
The only real play Harbaugh would offer for Nabers is that “I don’t think he’ll be scheduled for a full practice for a little while yet.”
Dart said “it makes everybody happy” just to see Nabers on the field.
“He definitely has a presence about him. There’s an aura that he has on the field that is exhilarating. It makes me happy,” Dart said. “I mean, it’s Leek. That’s it. It’s Leek. Every time he’s on the field, everybody knows where he’s at.”
The best news, of course, is that Nabers is on a football field again. For now, that is enough for the Giants.
