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Malik Nabers on who's to blame for the Giants' collapse 
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers. Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Malik Nabers has strong opinions on who's to blame for the Giants' latest fourth-quarter collapse 

By Conor Killmurray  |  Last updated Nov 23, 2025 10:37 PM ET

On Sunday, the New York Giants' 34-27 overtime defeat to the Detroit Lions was their 10th loss of the year. It was a frustratingly familiar loss for a team that's 2-5 in games they led by 10 or more points. 

So frustratingly familiar that Giants star wide receiver Malik Nabers, who's been out since Week 4 with an ACL injury, took to social media to question interim head coach Mike Kafka's late-game decisions. Dan Duggan, senior writer for The Athletic, caught Nabers' post before the 2024 fifth overall pick deleted his tweet. 

"Sometimes I think they [be making] us lose on purpose," Nabers wrote on Twitter. "Cause it's no way, bro you throw the ball instead of running it to make [them] burn two timeouts? Then you don't kick the field goal? Then they have to go down and score! Football common sense! Am I missing something?"

Leading by three points, the Giants marched down to the red zone with three minutes left and a chance to put the game away. However, they faltered in the red zone after multiple incompletions and a stuffed run on third and goal. On 4th-and-6, Kafka rolled the dice and went for another attempt at the red zone.

How the Giants blew another winnable game

In this scenario, the safe decision would have been to kick the field goal. The Giants would have gone up by six points if kicker Younghoe Koo — who was 2-for-2 — had made the chip-shot field goal. So, all the Giants defense would need to do is prevent the Lions from scoring the touchdown and the extra point. 

The Giants defense allowed over 500 yards of offense by then, so the idea that the defense would stop the Lions from scoring a game-winning touchdown wasn't a surefire one. The analytics also backed up Kafka's aggressive move. 

According to ESPN NFL analyst Seth Walder, the ESPN model recommended going for it on fourth down with 2:59 left in the game. Walder pointed out that if the Giants had made the field goal, they would have likely given the Lions a much better starting position on the ensuing kickoff. Going for it on fourth down in this situation meant that if the Giants didn't get it, then the Lions would have to start with the ball at their own six-yard line. 

Well, the Giants didn't get the touchdown on fourth down, and the Lions still marched it to midfield, allowing kicker Jake Bates to make a game-tying 59-yard field goal. Ultimately, the Giants faltered in overtime despite leading for the entire game.

Why Malik Nabers' assessment isn't wrong

To Nabers' point, Kafka opened the door for the Lions to take their time and stay in the game. And in the myriad of collapses for the Giants this year, like the 40-37 Week 2 overtime loss to the Dallas Cowboys that Nabers played in before getting hurt, the coaches have put the players in tough positions. 

However, the players haven't performed in the most important moments either. The Giants have a stronger roster than last year, but they have the same losing mentality as they've had for most of the past four seasons. While Nabers is probably not doing anyone on the team any favors by airing out his grievances in public, he has a point. 

It always feels like everyone on the Giants is trying to lose.

Conor Killmurray

Conor Killmurray is a long-suffering fan of New York sports, particularly the Giants and Mets—a potent combination for heartbreak, if you ask him. He graduated from West Chester University with a degree in English and enjoys searching for the most interesting sports stories to write about.

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