Giants WR Malik Nabers Trying to Put Dropped Pass Behind Him

The play still eats at the Giants' first-round draft pick.

Sep 15, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders cornerback Benjamin St-Juste (25) forces New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1) out of bounds during the second half at Commanders Field. / Luke Johnson-Imagn Images

New York Giants rookie receiver is on to preparing for the Cleveland Browns, whom the team will visit on Sunday.

But Nabers, the competitor that he is, is still trying to get over his disappointment in himself for dropping a key fourth-down pass in last week’s loss to the Washington Commanders, a drop that put a major stain on what was otherwise an impressive day and his first career 100-yard receiving performance.

“Like I said, it's just a moment I've got to put behind me and continue to go out there and catch extra passes after practice,” Nabers said on Wednesday. “I've been doing it anyway, but just keep on trying to get catches afterward.”

Nabers’s strive for perfection in his game and his competitiveness are only part of what has endeared him so much to the Giants organization. But the team does not want the rookie to get so consumed by what he did that it affects what he needs to do.

As such, his teammates and coaches have spent the last few days reminding Nabers that no one is perfect and that situations like these are why there are erasers on the ends of pencils. And Nabers seemed to be legitimately grateful for the words of encouragement he’s received.

“They were just like, ‘it's not on me.’ That one play doesn't determine the whole game,” he said when asked what his teammates have told him.

“We had a lot of different plays to change the outcome of the game. I had a lot of different talks with some of the veterans. I'm not going to speak on the conversations, but there was just a lot of uplifting from those veterans.”

One veteran who offered words of encouragement was quarterback Daniel Jones, who targeted the rookie 18 times last week and who said he’s glad to have that kind of talent to throw to. 

“He's a competitor and holds himself to a high standard. I think you realize that pretty quickly spending any time with him,” Jones said.

“He expects to make every play. It was a tough one for him, but I know he'll bounce back. He's a confident guy, and I think it was pretty clear we wouldn't have been in that situation without his performance and all he had done throughout the game. He'll be back, and he'll continue to be a huge part of what we do.”

Messages like that have helped ease the sting of the drop, if just a bit, for Nabers.

“It means a lot. It means that they’ve got my back,” he said. “It only makes the bond stronger. I'm the new person coming in, so having those guys as my teammates it's a powerful moment for them to come up to me, take time after practice and come up to me and just talk through different kinds of moments that I've been going through. Just showing that they’ve got my back through it all.”

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