Malik Nabers is making great progress in his recovery from a torn ACL, but the New York Giants' most recent update concerning the wide receiver made one thing very clear.
New York Giants fans have been worried about Malik Nabers all offseason. Would he be ready for Week 1? Would he miss extensive time to start the campaign? Would he ever be the same?
Well, the fanbase received some encouraging news at the outset of training camp when it was revealed that Nabers would not be starting the summer on the PUP list. Seeing him cutting in individual drills then further raised hopes.
Now, Nabers is doing 11-on-11 drills and is running full speed in the process, putting him that much closer to a Week 1 return.
ESPN's Jordan Raanan reported that Nabers ran those drills on Monday and then did his own individual workout on the side. Raanan clarified that Nabers was running "gingerly," but that is to be expected.
And it makes one thing very clear about Nabers' recovery: it's going to take some time before the 23-year-old is his Pro Bowl self again.
Even if Nabers plays against the Dallas Cowboys in the season opener on Sept. 13 (and it's looking more and more likely that he will), the chances of him actually being 100 percent are essentially zero.
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers. Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images.Not only is Nabers making his way back from a torn ACL, but he hasn't seen live-game action in almost a year. It's only natural that he will take some time to find his bearings, and I fully expected that that would be the case regardless of how quickly he progressed.
In fact, there is a chance that Nabers does not get fully back up to speed at any point this season. We may not see a wholly recovered Nabers until 2027.
It's one of the many reasons why expectations for the Giants should be tempered. Yes, New York should be better than last year. And yes, there is more to the Giants than Nabers. But let's face it: he is a pretty significant piece of what they want to do.
Jaxson Dart only had Nabers at his disposal for three quarters last season. Imagine how much of a game-changer it would have been for the young quarterback had Nabers never gotten injured?
Nabers is the central focus of New York's aerial attack, and there is no question that his gravity on the field will open up the offense for Big Blue.
But we may not see that in full effect until next year. Or, if we're fortunate, perhaps the second half of 2026.
The fact that Nabers seems to be making terrific progress is encouraging enough, but we do need to keep our perspective in check as the regular season draws closer.
