How rookie WR Malik Nabers has already taken over the Giants’ offense

Editor’s Note: This is the third part of a season-long series about a breakout star from this past week of NFL action. The winner of the third week: New York Giants Wide receivers Malik Nabers.

On a historic day for Malik Nabers, Giants coach Brian Daboll wanted to discuss a play on which the rookie didn’t register a stat.

With New York secured in its own territory early in the fourth quarter, the No. 6 overall pick avoided a potentially disastrous interception by deflecting a shaky pass out of the hands of two Cleveland Browns defenders.

Quarterback Daniel Jones didn’t even target the first-round receiver — he was looking for rookie tight end Theo Johnson on the left sideline — but the Browns’ Shelby Harris got a hand on his throwing arm as the QB launched the pass, and directed him around the ball towards Nabers.

According to Daboll, the heads-up play was the “biggest” the former LSU star made in New York’s 21-15 victory over Cleveland.

“For him to have the awareness to knock the ball down, that play to me says more about Malik than some other things,” Daboll said Sunday. “Everyone can see the touchdowns and stuff. But the unselfish play, the smart play he made was a big play in the game.” Gigantic.“

“Huge” can also describe what Nabers is becoming.

In the Giants’ first win of the season, he had eight receptions for 78 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the youngest wide receiver in NFL history to have two receiving touchdowns in a game (21 years and 56 days old), according to one Study from FOX Sports.

Nabers had two ridiculous catches on the same touchdown drive on Sunday. He first snagged a ball over the head of Browns cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. 28 yards down the sideline to put the Giants in the red zone. A few plays later, he showed off his impressive leaping ability and body control by keeping both feet inward to secure Jones’ high pass in the corner of the end zone.

Malik Nabers makes a spectacular catch to give the Giants a 14-7 lead over the Browns

Through three games, Nabers has already proven to be the focal point of the Giants’ offense. He has 23 receptions on 37 targets for 271 yards and three touchdowns – making him the first player in league history to have at least 20 receptions, 250 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns in his first three career games, according to a study by FOX Sports . He leads the NFL in targets and is tied for first in touchdowns scored. He also ranks second in receptions, third in receiving yards per game (7.7), fourth in scrimmage yards per touch (11.0) and fifth in receiving yards and yards per game (90.3).

Nabers is the most dynamic receiver the Giants have had since Odell Beckham Jr.’s early years and is already looking like one of the top receivers in the NFL. According to Next Gen Stats, he is the only wideout in the league to account for more than half of his team’s air yards this season (57.6%).

“I have a lot of faith in him going up and getting the ball,” Jones said. “We have to continue to take advantage of his playing strength.”

Why Nabers was successful in Week 3

A reason? He found the middle of the field.

Nabers’ second touchdown took place there at the end of the second quarter. Thanks to fellow receiver Darius Slayton’s pre-snap movement, Nabers had a mismatch in his favor against Browns safety Rodney McLeod Jr., who was nowhere near No. 6 when he made a jumping grab in the middle of the end zone made.

According to Pro Football Focus, more than 30% of Nabers’ goals this season have come from the short midrange (between 0 and 9 yards from the offensive line). He caught all 12 of his targets for 139 yards and a touchdown in three games there. Jones has an eye-popping 142.7 passer rating and targets the former LSU star in that part of the court.

Living in the middle of the field can leave players vulnerable to big hits. But at 200 pounds, the 6-foot-tall Nabers has the frame and strength to withstand the pounding. He leads all rookies with three forced fumbles, according to PFF.

But what makes the first-round rookie so difficult to cover is that he can hurt you in a variety of ways all over the field. On Sunday, he had four receptions on the right side of the field, three on the left side and one in the middle, running stop routes, slants, digs, quick outs and winning 50-50 balls on the sideline (see 28- Yard). Catch over Emerson).

More than 77% of his routes have come from a wide lineup so far this season, but according to Pro Football Focus, he runs nearly the same number of routes on both sides of the field – 88 on the left side, 91 on the right side.

“You have a guy like that,” said Daboll, “the duel doesn’t matter.”

Nabers was upset in the Giants’ Week 2 loss to the Washington Commanders, despite having ten catches for 127 yards and a touchdown. He had a fourth down drop that cost New York the chance for the game-winning drive.

He thanked his team for supporting him.

“I have a lot of great teammates behind my back who push me to achieve top performance,” said Nabers on Sunday.

We see it right from the start of his career.

Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he served as executive director Titans Beat writer for a year and a half. He covered that Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) before transferring to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.

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