Malik Nabers’ health will be the most important factor for the Giants offense this season

An injury to their star player is not what head coach Brian Daboll needs as some question his job security. After a 9-7-1 record and a playoff victory in Daboll's first season in charge, the Giants have gone just 9-25 over the past two seasons, including a dismal 3-14 last season.

Nabers accounted for 170 of the Giants 554 total targets in 2024, according to ESPN stats. This hovers around 30 percent of the total team targets. Wan'Dale Robinson was second in targets with 140. Nabers also grabbed seven of the 15 passing touchdowns thrown by the Giants in the 2024-25 season. 

To give some context, some of the biggest stars around the league have a similar target share to Nabers in their offense. Ja'Marr Chase, a nominee for the Offensive Player of the Year Award last season, had 175 of the 628 total targets on the Bengals offense. That is 27 percent of the Bengals target share.

Justin Jefferson had 29 percent of his offenses target with the Minnesota Vikings. Chase and Jefferson are two of the best in the league at the position. Having a similar share of their offenses shows the impact Nabers has on the Giants offense.

When a team loses their number one receiver the rest of the offense will suffer. Even when the star isn't getting the ball, they require extra attention from the defense which can help free up other receivers and help the run game. 

In 2023 when Jefferson missed seven games, the Vikings offense suffered. With Jefferson playing all 17 games this past season, the Vikings were able to go from averaging 20.2 points per game to 25.4.

With a passing attack hoping to grow this season, a receiver able to get open as often as Nabers does is irreplaceable to the team. 

Having a healthy Nabers can open up the run game for Tyrone Tracy Jr. and rookie Cam Skattebo. Having Nabers on the field should help get receivers Robinson and Darius Slayton open as well. Having an offensive threat will make defenses respect all parts of an offense, leading to more opportunities for success. 

Raanan updated Twitter/X later on Tuesday that Nabers is “OK” with a picture of Nabers on the field. 

Not only has Nabers hurt his shoulder in camp, he has also been dealing with a nagging toe injury. 

“It’s like a mosquito that don’t want to go away,” Nabers told Kay Adams on the "Up & Adams Show." “I’ve been doing an excellent job of just staying on track of it and having his (Russell Wilson’s) people, having my people, all together, trying to work on keeping me as healthy as possible. We're moving in the right direction. We're just staying on top of it so it don't give me any problems later on down the line.” 

NFL players play through injuries consistently throughout the season and there's an adage in football that no player is playing healthy by the end of the regular season. Nabers’ shoulder and toe may not end up being an issue during the regular season, but in July it’s enough to give Giants fans a load of anxiety.