New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers isn't on the PUP list, but will he actually be ready for Week 1?
The New York Giants opted not to place wide receiver Malik Nabers on the PUP list before training camp, which was obviously a positive sign.
There was legitimate concern over whether or not Nabers would be ready for the Giants' season opener against the Dallas Cowboys, and avoiding the PUP list was the first step to ensuring that the star pass-catcher will be on the field.
But that doesn't necessarily mean New York is out of the woods yet.
As Giants veterans reported to training camp on Tuesday, Dan Duggan of The Athletic provided an update on the Nabers situation, and he doesn't seem entirely sure that the former first-round pick will be available come Week 1.
"Avoiding the PUP list is encouraging for Nabers’ potential to be ready for the Sept. 13 season opener against the Cowboys. But there are still no assurances, and it doesn’t mean Nabers is 100 percent healthy," Duggan wrote.
So, why didn't New York just place Nabers on the PUP list if he weren't healthy?
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images."Players on the PUP list are restricted to working on the sidelines with trainers during practice," Duggan explained. "By keeping Nabers off the list, the Giants can integrate him into practice as he progresses. He will have a reduced workload early in camp, but the team will have the freedom to determine his participation on a day-to-day basis. Even getting limited work in practices will be beneficial as Nabers adjusts to a new offensive system."
Nabers tore his ACL last September, and it seems fairly obvious that he suffered some other damage in the knee, as well. John Harbaugh even hinted at that earlier in the offseason.
It's fair to wonder if the 23-year-old will be 100 percent at any point in 2026; let alone in the first game of the season.
But just having Nabers on the gridiron will be a major boon to a Giants offense that is featuring a hungry second-year quarterback in Jaxson Dart, one who played all of three quarters with Nabers last season.
New York added a bunch of wide receivers over the last several months, signing all of Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin III, Odell Beckham Jr. and JuJu Smith-Schuster in free agency while netting Malachi Fields in the NFL Draft.
But none of those receivers can do what Nabers does for the squad, and even if Nabers is compromised, he is still the best wide out on the Giants' roster.
Duggan said that it's "fair to be optimistic" to expect Nabers to be in the lineup when New York faces the Cowboys on Sept. 13, but until we actually see Nabers getting in some work this summer, expectations should be tempered.
