One of the biggest stories hanging over the New York Giants off-season has been the status of wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Nabers tore his ACL early in the Giants’ victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, also suffering meniscus damage in the process. Nabers tore his ACL on September 28th, but wasn’t able to have surgery until a month later on October 28th. Concerns were raised again in the off-season when it was reported that he had a second “clean-up” procedure, with fans and the media wondering if
he would be available to start the season.
So it was a bit of a surprise when Nabers not only avoided the PUP list to start training camp, but started taking part in individual drills on the first day. He was a regular participant in individual drills for the first two weeks of camp, with those in attendance consistently reporting that he looked good doing so.
Nabers graduated to taking part in team drills — albeit in a red “no contact” jersey — this past week. In light of his progress, we wanted to ask fans if Nabers taking part in team periods made fans more confident that he would be available for Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys.
Most fans think he will be, but the fanbase as a whole doesn’t exactly seem to be brimming with confidence.
We’ve had nothing but positive reviews of Nabers in practice and he has been a regular participant. His intensity has ramped up, and his body seems to have responded well, so it’s a bit of a surprise that a third of the fanbase still doesn’t expect him to be ready for Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys.
Granted, there’s a difference between running routes on air, practicing one-on-one against your teammates, or participating in team periods while the defense can’t (or at least shouldn’t) touch you.
As head coach John Harbaugh said about Nabers,
“He won’t go through the rest of the summer in a red jersey,” Harbaugh said. “No, he’ll be out of a red jersey before he plays in a game. He’s going to have to get bumped around and hit and fronted up so he knows how to, you just have to feel that and know how to deal with it to protect yourself.”
Nabers’ progress thus far has to be encouraging, and the Giants have to hope that he’ll be available for Week 1 against the Cowboys. Jaxson Dart has quickly forged a connection with Isaiah Likely, while Calvin Austin III and Malachi Fields have performed well. Likewise, the Giants’ running game is intriguing with the addition of Najee Harris as well as Sisi Mauigoa playing well at right guard.
But much like the Giants’ teams of a decade ago: The offense is significantly scarier with the star receiver from LSU than without him. The Giants are currently 2.5-point underdogs in Week 1 against the Cowboys (per FanDuel), and their best chance of an upset comes with Nabers on the field.
