Malik Nabers worked most of the New York Giants’ team periods on Tuesday after an early session with the training staff as he continues his return from last season’s torn ACL. But head coach John Harbaugh still would not say whether the receiver will play in their Week 1 opener against the Dallas Cowboys.
“He worked with the trainers for a little bit early, then he came out and was involved in most of the team reps,” Harbaugh told reporters. “It’s day-to-day. He’s kind of working through what he needs from one day to the next.”
Asked if the staff must assume Nabers will miss the opener, Harbaugh cited an “Odd Couple” warning about the word assume and said the Giants will prepare for every possibility.
“We’ve got to plan for every outcome,” he said.
“We have to plan that he’ll be there fully. We’ll have to plan that he’s not there at all, and we’ll have to plan that he’s there for some partial amount, and every kind of amount in between.”
Nabers has said he wants to play four quarters and be healthy doing it. Harbaugh set the same bar.
“Is it going to be where he needs to be to help us win? And then he has to be confident,” Harbaugh said. “For him to play at the level he’s going to need to play for us to win and him to protect himself, then he’s going to have to feel good about it. He’s got to know he’s there.”
Harbaugh called Nabers' ability to draw attention from defenses a factor, but not the only one, and left open whether a return would come with a pitch count.
With the Cowboys visit 11 days away, New York is building plans for every version of Nabers’ availability rather than locking in one.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants' John Harbaugh planning for 'every outcome' with Malik Nabers
