Malik Nabers’ right knee is the biggest question hanging over Giants camp, and the answer may start with a PUP designation.
When veterans report to West Virginia on July 28, Nabers is expected to open training camp on the physically unable to perform list. That would keep the Giants’ top offensive weapon from being a full participant as John Harbaugh begins his first camp at The Greenbrier.
The timing traces back to a Week 4 win over the Chargers, when Nabers tore the ACL in his right knee and ended a 2025 season that had only just begun. An MRI confirmed the season-ending tear the next day. Before the injury, he had already put together 18 catches for 271 yards and two touchdowns on 35 targets, production that had him on a 1,100-yard pace.
The rehab has not been straightforward. Nabers had a second procedure this spring, described by NFL.com as a “cleanup” to remove scar tissue that was creating stiffness in the joint. He also suffered a full lateral meniscus tear, which required a full repair instead of a simple trim.
That extra surgery is a big reason the PUP list looks likely. With only the ACL reconstruction, the ramp-up would be further along by now. Instead, the recovery has pushed deeper into the summer.
Harbaugh has been careful with his language. He said the injury was “not a simple knee,” and noted that Nabers was “doing his job to return as soon as possible.” It’s the kind of update that acknowledges progress without promising anything specific.
The practical path appears to be this: Nabers opens camp on PUP, works his way toward a physical later in the summer, and then tries to build toward a possible Week 1 return. That return is not guaranteed. The coach’s tone has been measured, not upbeat.
There’s also a roster wrinkle to watch. A player can come off PUP at any point during camp, but if he’s still on the list when final cuts arrive, he has to miss at least the first four regular-season games. For Giants fans, that’s the real checkpoint - not whether Nabers is out there in early August, but whether he’s off PUP before the roster is set.
The concern is obvious because of what Nabers already proved. As a rookie in 2024, he caught 109 passes for 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns, setting the franchise single-season receptions record and the NFL rookie receptions record. The Giants drafted him sixth overall in 2024 to be a WR1, and 18 months later they’re still waiting to see the same version of him that shattered those marks.
The rest of the receiver room was built with Nabers as the centerpiece, which makes the depth look a lot thinner when he’s not available. Darius Slayton returns as the most reliable outside option.
Darnell Mooney was brought in to handle the slot snaps vacated when Wan’Dale Robinson left for the Titans. Calvin Austin III brings speed.
Third-round pick Malachi Fields is projected as the No. 3.
Isaiah Hodgins, Odell Beckham Jr. and JuJu Smith-Schuster are in the mix on minimum deals for the back end.
That group can help an offense survive stretches. It is not built to carry one. And for Jaxson Dart, who spent his rookie year throwing to Nabers before the injury, the development path gets a lot tougher if his best target is watching the opener from the sideline.
The Giants can live with a slow return. They cannot live with losing the player who owns the franchise’s single-season receptions record.
Nabers on PUP in July is one thing. Nabers still on PUP in September would be another story entirely.
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