Malik Nabers has cleared another major hurdle towards making himself available for the Giants season opener.
Nabers, continuing his progression towards full football activity after multiple knee surgeries, was not wearing a red non-contact jersey at Monday's practice, another sign that a Week 1 return could very well be in the cards.
"I thought he looked good," head coach John Harbaugh said. "He was moving well, probably moving the best we've seen him look...it was a good practice for him today. Got the red shirt off, so that was a good step."
Harbaugh told reporters that the level of contact Nabers will take in practices will be "very reasonable," but "in season-ish" for much of this week. That should be a good test for Nabers, who is just months removed from many assuming he would not be ready for the season opener after watching him move at a charity softball event. He has seemingly improved immensely since that viral video emerged on social media, to the point where it now seems likelier than ever that Nabers will break the huddle with the Giants offense when the season begins against the Cowboys.
Harbaugh unsurprisingly did not make such a declaration, but hinted that what the eyes tell you can suggest how Nabers is trending, which again leads to the belief that New York will very likely have its top receiver ready for a full season.
"I just don't want to make any kind of statements like that," Harbaugh said. "It's reasonable to assume that. Those are all kind of things you can assume just by watching the guy practice...how he gets through practice and how ready he is to play and protect himself is really based on practice."
Big Blue's top wide receiver has ditched his non-contact jersey.
Big Blue's top wide receiver has ditched his non-contact jersey.
