Malik Nabers' Latest Injury Update Bolsters Fantasy Outlook Entering Draft Season
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The New York Giants have been under a spotlight all offseason following a string of key acquisitions, building potential for a return to postseason play under John Harbaugh. Despite being ravaged by injury in 2025, the team showed tremendous flashes with young stars like Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo and Malik Nabers leading the way entering the 2026 NFL season.
Nabers shined early in the season before suffering a season-ending torn ACL just four games into the year. He underwent a challenging rehab process, but continued to post encouraging updates along the way heading into training camp.
On Friday, Nabers joined the team for non-contact activity, according to reports. He’s on the fast-track to return early in the 2026 campaign, and could suit up against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1. The latest update to his timeline will pay dividends on his fantasy football value as draft season approaches, and will have a vastly positive impact on New York’s offense as a whole.
“Everything points towards Malik Nabers being back for the start of the season”, per @Connor_J_Hughes pic.twitter.com/u2DR1FQbdf
— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) August 13, 2026
Hopes are high entering the new year, especially for Nabers, who will likely fall off the board in the first two rounds of most fantasy drafts. He’ll be a popular target for Dart in year two, and projects to command the vast majority of the target share in New York’s passing game. With such volume, there’s plenty of reason why fantasy managers might buy into the hype and land Nabers early.
Let’s explore his fantasy outlook following his return to team activities, and projections over his current ADP:
Malik Nabers Likely To See Fantasy ADP Surge Ahead Of Regular Season Kick-Off
The Giants’ offense projects to be much-improved if the unit’s offensive core can sustain availability over the course of the season. Dart flashed traits of a franchise quarterback in his rookie season, with Skattebo joining him in the backfield.
Defenses will be forced to stack the box more than some coordinators might prefer with Nabers split out wide, projecting a fast start to the season for the LSU wideout. Harbaugh and his staff will continue to approach his rehab process with caution, though his recent updates have kickstarted a leap in ADP projections.
The star wideout currently sits at No. 32 according to PPR ADP rankings, making gradual growth over the course of the offseason.
This trend will likely persist heading into draft season, though his range will likely remain discounted in comparison to his expected production for the upcoming year. Fantasy players should sustain their optimism in another big year from Nabers for what could be one of the NFL’s biggest bounce-back teams.
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Ethen Hutton is a MLB, WNBA, College, and Fantasy contributor at On SI. Previously, he's covered the NBA, WNBA and NFL for Sportskeeda. Hutton is also a passionate fantasy football player and an immense music lover.