Malik Nabers came out of Thursday’s Giants practice with the kind of update New York needed after a rough Monday night: the shoulder issue that briefly knocked him out in Los Angeles looks manageable, and he was back on the field in full.
The 23-year-old receiver said X-rays were clean enough for him to keep going, and he didn’t sound worried about being ready for Sunday against the Tennessee Titans at MetLife Stadium.
“I’ll be fine,” Nabers said. “I’m smiling, I’m out there playing, catching the ball. So good results.”
That’s a welcome turn after Nabers left late in the first quarter of the Giants’ 28-6 loss to the Rams. He got hurt on a jump ball against Trent McDuffie, popped the shoulder back in on the sideline, then returned two series later. He ended the night with one catch on four targets for one yard, and the offense never found its footing after Jaxson Dart went down on the opening drive and Jameis Winston took over.
Nabers didn’t say whether the shoulder is the same one that bothered him in college and during 2025 camp, and he stopped short of suggesting it would keep him out this week. Official game designations come Friday.
The quarterback change is now locked in for the rest of the regular season. The Giants placed Dart on injured reserve Thursday after confirming he’ll have surgery on a left knee that damaged the MCL, PCL, and meniscus while leaving the ACL intact. Winston will start against Tennessee.
For Nabers, that means the chemistry reset starts immediately. He called the connection with Winston a work in progress and stayed after practice with Winston, Darnell Mooney, Malachi Fields, and Theo Johnson to get extra throws in.
That extra time matters, because Winston completed 11 of 27 passes for 111 yards and an interception in relief on Monday. Nabers had already built early timing with Dart in Week 1, when he caught six passes for 69 yards against Dallas.
The shoulder situation is separate from the torn ACL that limited Nabers to four games in 2025. He returned for the opener and looked like himself, and Monday’s injury wasn’t the kind of collision that usually makes a receiver leave for good.
He went up for the ball, came down favoring the arm, and still finished the game. Playing through a dislocation isn’t unusual in the NFL, but the risk of it happening again climbs whenever a receiver has to reach overhead or away from his body.
Nabers wasn’t the only injury concern on Thursday, though he was the one bright spot. Andrew Thomas, who was limited Wednesday with a groin injury suffered late against the Rams, did not practice. Brian Burns also missed a second straight day with a low ankle sprain and is expected to miss multiple weeks, according to team sources cited by Sports Illustrated.
Dan Salomone of Giants.com posted the full Thursday participation list on X:
Giants Injury Report 9/24
Did Not Participate:
▪️OLB Brian Burns (Ankle)
▪️QB Jaxson Dart (Knee)
▪️OT Andrew Thomas (Groin)
Limited:
▪️CB Deonte Banks (Calf)
▪️DL Shelby Harris (Toe)
▪️S Tyler Nubin (Calf)
Full:
▪️OT Jermaine Eluemunor (Thigh)
▪️CB Nic Jones (Shoulder)
▪️OL…
- Dan Salomone (@Dan_Salomone) September 24, 2026
The Giants’ own injury report showed Nabers going from limited on Wednesday to full on Thursday, while Thomas stayed limited-to-out and Burns remained out. Dart is now on injured reserve.
If Thomas can’t go, Marcus Mbow would be the likely replacement at left tackle. Without Burns, more of the pass-rush burden falls on Kayvon Thibodeaux and Abdul Carter. That’s a lot for a 1-1 team already adjusting to life without its dual-threat quarterback.
Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said the playbook shrinks without Dart’s running threat, which puts even more pressure on Winston to operate from the pocket. That leaves Nabers as one of the biggest variables on Sunday.
If the shoulder holds up, he remains the Giant most capable of changing the game. Friday’s injury designations will tell the rest of the story.
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