The New York Giants finally have some good news to talk about. Wide receiver Malik Nabers, recovering from a torn ACL suffered last season, returned to practice this week and told reporters he feels ahead of schedule.
Nabers said he feels better than expected at this point in the recovery. That is a big update for a Giants team that has been building the entire offseason around getting him back healthy for the start of the regular season.
Nabers is one of the best young wide receivers in the NFL. He was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2024 draft, put up 1,204 receiving yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie in a broken Giants offense, and was on pace for a legitimate All-Pro season before the ACL injury in late November. Losing him crushed New York’s chance at making a run last year and set the franchise back another season.
Getting him back on the field, even in a limited practice capacity, is exactly what the Giants needed. Head coach Brian Daboll is on the hottest of hot seats. He probably needs to make the playoffs this year to keep his job, and there is no version of that outcome that does not run through Nabers being healthy and productive.
The quarterback situation still complicates everything. Russell Wilson is the starter for now, but rookie Jaxson Dart is going to push for playing time by midseason. Whoever is throwing to Nabers has to be able to feed him the ball 10-plus times a game, because he is the entire passing game right now with Wan’Dale Robinson still developing and no reliable second option on the roster.
Nabers is not going to be full-go this early. Coming back from a torn ACL that late in the year takes time, and the team is being careful not to push him too fast during the padded practices. He will likely be limited through the preseason and eased into full workload during the first few weeks of the regular season.
The concerning part of any ACL comeback is not the initial return. It is the second season after. Some receivers come back and look fine the first year, then the compensating injuries stack up in the follow-up season. The Giants medical staff has to manage this carefully both for 2026 and for the long-term health of a foundational player.
Fans are going to want to see him do something explosive in the preseason. Do not overreact if he plays sparingly. The whole goal for August is to have him ready to play Week 1 with a normal snap count and to trust the leg without hesitation.
The Giants have not had good news to talk about in years. Nabers being back ahead of schedule is real good news. It does not fix Daboll’s job status, it does not fix the offensive line, and it does not fix the quarterback situation. But it fixes the biggest single problem the roster had.
Get healthy. Play smart. Let the rest work itself out.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
