NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated mentioned this past spring that the reputation young wide receiver Malik Nabers picked up during his time with the LSU Tigers “for being high maintenance was a concern for teams” before the New York Giants made Nabers the sixth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com acknowledged on Monday that “Giants decision-makers wondered aloud” before the draft how Nabers may respond to a lack of targets during games, but New York receivers coach Mike Groh seems unconcerned after working with the rookie since the spring.”I think any good player wants the ball, and they want to impact the game,” Groh recently said about Nabers. “Those kinds of things, that’s part of the game. Maybe there’s going to be a conversation throughout the course of a game once or twice a season. That’s just part of football. So I’m not anticipating any major problems. But if he wasn’t upset, he probably wouldn’t be the guy that we thought he was. That’s one of the things that was attractive about him, too.”
To his credit, Nabers suggested early into training camp that he realized he no longer was “gonna be the first guy that’s always gonna get the ball.” He offered that comment before he routinely wowed fans and other onlookers with highlight-reel plays in practices, though, and it now seems a given he will become the favorite target of starting quarterback Daniel Jones beginning with New York’s regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. “I think he’ll handle it well,” Groh said about Nabers routinely facing top-tier defensive backs beginning next month. “There are going to be moments like there is for every rookie when they have to adjust to playing guys that have been in this league for several years. I think he’s up to that challenge. I think he will be. They’ll get him every now and then. But he’s going to get his share, too.”
If Nabers remains in such conversations through at least Christmastime, Jones could enjoy a needed bounce-back season and ensure he stays with the organization beyond this winter.
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