The New York Giants are in some deep trouble right now. Their star rookie receiver Malik Nabers has immediately impacted this Giants team this season, in a good way. The rookie has set the league on fire and has quickly entrenched himself among the league’s top receivers. Unfortunately for Malik and the New York Giants Malik Nabers suffered a concussion on a late fourth down in Thursday’s 20-15 loss to the Dallas Cowboys causing his status for week 5 to be doubtful.
Malik Nabers remains in the early stages of concussion protocol, meaning that the Giants could be without him against the Seattle Seahawks, which means the Giants probably won’t be the favorite in that game.
New York Giants Quarterback Daniel Jones On The Absence Of Malik Nabers
“I think we got a lot of guys who can make plays, We’ve said that really throuhg training camp up until now and guys stepped up today and made plays. We’ll see what happens with Malik through the week, but confient in all of our guys.”
Daniel Jones has had a tough start to this year, looking horrific in week 1 and increasingly getting better until the loss against Dallas. But much of that production has come from Malik Nabers being able to separate from corners at a high level and making plays after the catch. This has greatly helped this team, considering the deep ball has been virtually nonexistent since Jones had suffered an ACL injury.
The Giants’ offense has been severely hampered by this inability to hit on explosive plays, something head coach Brian Daboll was known for during his time as offensive coordinator with the Buffalo Bills, which everyone had high hopes for more explosive offense this offseason, but he has been forced to adjust his playbook to accommodate Jones’ strengths and current limitations.
Is Daniel Jones Ready To Bounce Back Even Without His WR1
Unfortunately, the short-range strategy is unsustainable. An effective offense needs to stretch the field, opening up opportunities for playmakers like Darius Slayton and rookie Jalin Hyatt. Both wide receivers have been largely invisible this season due to the lack of deep-ball attempts. Daniel Jones’ struggles with the deep ball may be due to lingering mental or physical effects from his knee injury. His throws have often come up short this season, which could be why he’s hesitant to fully trust his body or even a slight loss of arm strength.
The Giants’ offense will continue to underperform until they can consistently capitalize on deep-pass opportunities. They currently, average just 15 points per game, ranking third worst in the league, ahead of only the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins. They’re tied with the Jacksonville Jaguars, making them one of the least productive offenses in the NFL. They also rank in the bottom half of the league in total yards per game, a problem exacerbated by an inconsistent rushing attack as well.
If the Giants want to move the football effectively against the Seattle Seahawks defense, Jones will have to hit on big plays. With Malik Nabers on the sidelined and the rushing attack faltering, Jones finds himself in a pivotal position. To turn things around, the deep ball needs to become a reliable weapon again. For more articles like this check out GridIronHeroics.com or follow me on X(Twitter) @Crain_Sports1