
Draft Note by John Paulsen
There are times that the talent is elite and the ADP is still a problem. Nabers is one of the best young receivers in football–his combined 2024 season and three healthy games in 2025 average out to 14.7 points per game over 17 games, a genuine WR1 number that would have made him 2025’s WR6 on a per-game basis. His 92nd-percentile ESPN OPEN score reflects one of the best separation profiles at the position, and his 85th-percentile YPRR confirms that per-route production over a small but meaningful sample. The health situation is the entire conversation. Nabers underwent surgery for a torn ACL and meniscus in October, then had a follow-up procedure in April to remove scar tissue–the team says the second procedure doesn't delay the recovery timeline, but it's now been eight months since the initial injury. The Giants are targeting Week 1, though head coach John Harbaugh acknowledged it isn't guaranteed and Nabers could begin the year on the PUP list, which would cost him the first four games at minimum. Even if he plays Week 1, ACL recovery doesn't end at clearance–the ramp-up period introduces real risk of reduced production, potential setbacks, and the psychological adjustment of returning to game speed after a serious knee injury. He's going as the WR9 overall, which is a steep draft capital to use on a player who could miss the start of the season and faces legitimate uncertainty for weeks after returning. The floor of this pick is a frustrating, injury-managed half-season. The talent is real; the risk is terrifying.
Malik Nabers
- WR
- , New York Giants
- 23
- 200 lbs
- 6' 0"
- LSU
- 29
- 1
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Ian Rapoport
·Sep 29, 2025 · 11:26 AM EDT
2026 Draft note
There are times that the talent is elite and the ADP is still a problem. Nabers is one of the best young receivers in football–his combined 2024 season and three healthy games in 2025 average out to 14.7 points per game over 17 games, a genuine WR1 number that would have made him 2025’s WR6 on a per-game basis. His 92nd-percentile ESPN OPEN score reflects one of the best separation profiles at the position, and his 85th-percentile YPRR confirms that per-route production over a small but meaningful sample. The health situation is the entire conversation. Nabers underwent surgery for a torn ACL and meniscus in October, then had a follow-up procedure in April to remove scar tissue–the team says the second procedure doesn't delay the recovery timeline, but it's now been eight months since the initial injury. The Giants are targeting Week 1, though head coach John Harbaugh acknowledged it isn't guaranteed and Nabers could begin the year on the PUP list, which would cost him the first four games at minimum. Even if he plays Week 1, ACL recovery doesn't end at clearance–the ramp-up period introduces real risk of reduced production, potential setbacks, and the psychological adjustment of returning to game speed after a serious knee injury. He's going as the WR9 overall, which is a steep draft capital to use on a player who could miss the start of the season and faces legitimate uncertainty for weeks after returning. The floor of this pick is a frustrating, injury-managed half-season. The talent is real; the risk is terrifying.
2026 Strength of Schedule - NYG
| W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | W5 | W6 | W7 | W8 | W9 | W10 | W11 | W12 | W13 | W14 | W15 | W16 | W17 | W18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 DAL | 18 @LAR | 28 TEN | 5 ARI | 23 @WAS | 7 NO | 4 @HOU | BYE | 2 @PHI | 23 WAS | 12 JAX | 24 @IND | 26 SF | 3 @SEA | 9 CLE | 29 @DET | 32 @DAL | 2 PHI |
Schedule difficulty based on schedule-adjusted, positional defensive ranking. Top DEF = 1, bottom DEF = 32.
Game Stats
| Week | Opp | Rec | RecYds | RecTD | Tgts | YPR | RuAtt | RuYds | RuTD | Fum | YPC | STD | 0.5 PPR | PPR | Snaps | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | @WAS | 5 | 71 | 0 | 12 | 14.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 7.1 | 9.60 | 12.1 | 64/68 | 94.1% |
| 2 | @DAL | 9 | 167 | 2 | 13 | 18.56 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 28.7 | 33.20 | 37.7 | 66/67 | 98.5% |
| 3 | KC | 2 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 6.50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.3 | 2.30 | 3.3 | 61/66 | 92.4% |
| 4 | LAC | 2 | 20 | 0 | 3 | 10.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 2.0 | 3.00 | 4.0 | 25/76 | 32.9% |
O
Injury Details (w5)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @NO | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w6)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | PHI | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w7)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @DEN | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w8)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @PHI | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w9)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | SF | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w10)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @CHI | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w11)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | GB | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w12)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @DET | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w13)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @NE | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w14)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | BYE | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w15)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | WAS | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w16)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | MIN | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w17)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | @LV | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
O
Injury Details (w18)
Status: Out Injury: Knee | DAL | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Per game | 4.50 | 67.75 | 0.50 | 8.75 | 15.06 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 9.78 | 12.03 | 14.28 | 54.00/69.25 | 79.49% | |
| Totals | 18 | 271 | 2 | 35 | 15.06 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 39.1 | 48.1 | 57.1 | 216/277 | 79.49% | |






