Malik Nabers Is Racing the Clock to Be Ready for Week 1 — and the Giants Are Holding Their Breath

The last time the New York Giants had a receiver in their lineup with the skill set and production potential of Malik Nabers was in 2018, the final year of Odell Beckham Jr.’s first stint with Big Blue.

Unfortunately for the Giants, the absence of a generational talent like Nabers changes everything about how the offense can function. That’s currently the situation New York has found itself in since Nabers went down with a season-ending ACL tear in Week 4 last year.

Nabers is head and shoulders above his fellow receivers for multiple reasons, including his precise route-running and separation, his explosive burst, and his yards after the catch (YAC).

The numbers back up all of this. In 2024, his stellar rookie season, Nabers led all Giants wide receivers in YAC with 475. From a bigger picture perspective, Nabers’s 1,204 receiving yards ranked seventh league-wide in 2024.

And his 109 receptions ranked fifth league-wide among all receiving targets and were one shy of tying Rams receiver Puca Nakua’s record for the most receptions in league history by a rookie.

Nabers was on his way to doing even bigger things in 2025, his second season, before his injury.

Per NextGen Stats, he accounted for 54.9% of the Giants' total air yards, the highest mark in the league during the first four games of the season. That made Nabers one of two receivers in that period who accounted for over half of their team's air yards.

That came from three receptions on 12 deep targets (20+ air yards) across those four games, two of which resulted in touchdowns.

MALIK NABERS, WR

Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 200 lbs.
Exp.: 3 years
School: LSU
How Acquired: D1-’24

2025 in Review

Coming off an impressive 1,000-yard rookie campaign, expectations for Nabers’s second NFL season were sky-high, especially with the anticipation that the team would eventually flip the switch to quarterback Jaxson Dart.

Nabers and Dart ended up playing just 27 snaps together, most of them in Week 4. That was when Nabers crumpled to the MetLife Stadium turf after a pass attempt, clutching his knee before being carted off the field, with his ACL and meniscus among the casualties of the noncontact injury.

Nabers finished his injury-shortened second season with 18 receptions for 271 yards and two touchdowns, while facing a lengthy recovery before his return to the field.

Contract/Cap Info

Nabers is in year three of his four-year rookie deal. His 2026 cap figure is very easily digestible at $7.965 million, which includes a $2.375 million roster bonus due on the third day of training camp.

That roster bonus, along with his $1.075 million base salary, makes up the $3.45 million guaranteed money Nabers will collect this year, regardless of when he starts the season.

2026 Preview

The Giants and Nabers are optimistic that the receiver can return to his pre-injury form. The question is, when will that happen? Nabers is expected to start training camp on the PUP list, and the best-case scenario is that by later in the summer, he’ll be able to pass a physical and begin his ramp-up to potentially see action by Week 1, even if it’s on a pitch count.

The Giants made sure to protect themselves just in case Nabers isn’t ready by bringing in a slew of veteran receivers. That said, none of them at this point in their respective careers can bring the dynamic style of play that a healthy Nabers has to offer.

When Nabers does return to the field, it’s probably going to take him additional time to fully get back to being the player he once was, and certainly, the Giants are going to be patient with him as they look to shape their offense into an explosive, vertical downfield threat.

Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news, and send your mailbag questions to us.

Add us as a preferred source on Google