Grey clouds are seemingly hovering above the MetLife Stadium after the Giants’ 6th overall draft pick missed the last two days of practice with an ankle injury. With the regular season almost on the horizon, the Giants would be hoping Malik Nabers’s injury is nothing serious.

From the moment Nabers was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, his importance to the Giants was understandable. However, on Sunday, the rookie WR turned his ankle, which resulted in him leaving the field to stretch. Following his injury scare, Nabers didn’t partake in Tuesday’s training while watching from the sidelines.

When asked about his chances of playing the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, the Giants rookie stated, “I’m feeling good. I don’t think it’s really nothing too serious, though. Just typical things that happen with the ankle when you play football, you play basketball. Nothing too serious.”

Even coach Brian Daboll offered reassurances regarding Nabers’s possible extent of injury. “He’s good. We’ll keep him down today. He’ll go out there and do stretch, but he’s good. He’ll be good. It’s not long-term or anything like that.” Well, missing the rookie WR for a long-term injury would be a huge loss for the Giants as he is set to start from the get-go.

But Nabers’ injury didn’t occur in contact with anyone, as he didn’t leave the field immediately after feeling the strain in his ankle. However, after a few plays, he realized, “At first, when I did it, it was no big deal. I went out, did another play, and then it was like, Nah, something just doesn’t feel right. So I wanted to get it checked.”

To gather more evidence behind the reason for his injury, Nabers decided to check out a few tapes from the plays. “I really didn’t know during practice until I watched the film. I watched the play that it happened. And then I watched it, I was like, Alright, cool, that’s the reason why I’m feeling it,” the rookie WR conveyed.

However, moving into the preseason games, Nabers did play his part against the Texans, where his explosiveness was on display. With 4 passes caught on 6 targets for 54 yards and a sensational 21-yard reception. Nabers showed flashes of what can be expected from him once he fully recovers. Elsewhere, the rookie wide receiver is garnering praise from other NFL players like Jets rival CB Sauce Gardner before their Joint Practice in Florham Park.

Sauce Gardner is full of positives for Malik Nabers ahead of regular season opener

After Nabers’s dominant performances for LSU last season, which saw him finish with 89 catches for 1,548 yards while adding 14 TDs, he was one of the hottest prospects coming into the 2024 NFL draft. Therefore, Nabers being chosen by the Giants in the first round wasn’t surprising to many.

Even Jets CB Sauce Gardner, who won the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in his debut season, was full of praise for the Giants WR. Speaking to the media, Gardner stated, “He’s nice. He’s very sudden when it comes to getting in and out of his breaks. You know what I’m saying. I know this might sound kind of weird, but probably won’t. He reminds me of an LSU receiver.”

Gardner went on to find some similarities between the rookie WR and a few others, “Kind of a little Ja’Marr Chase, a little bit. Little Justin Jefferson, a little subtle.” Both Jefferson and Chase were also first-round picks for the Vikings and Bengals, respectively, in 2020 and 2021. But he was also quick to point out that at the end of the day, Nabers would be a self-made player. Although compared to Chase and Jefferson, it wasn’t for downplaying his abilities.

As the regular season draws near, the expectations from Nabers continue to grow. But can he remain injury-free while leading the Giants offense that is looking to make the playoffs yet again after making their first appearance since 2016?

Check out our recent interview with Chris Gronkowski, in which he talks about his NFL journey and the off-field stories he shared with other NFL players at Dual Threat Podcast with BG12.