The New York Giants have plenty of problems heading into 2025, but landing a No.1 wide receiver isn’t one of them—thanks to Malik Nabers. The No. 6 pick in last year’s draft set an NFL rookie record for receptions by a receiver, proving that, even with a quarterback carousel featuring Daniel Jones, Drew Lock, Tommy DeVito, and Tim Boyle, he could still be dominant. So naturally, the idea of passing on Nabers, in hindsight, feels insane.
Yet, in a 2024 re-draft by Marcus Mosher of the 33rd Team, the Giants do exactly that. Instead of taking Nabers, Mosher has New York selecting Bo Nix at No. 6 overall, citing the team’s glaring need for a franchise quarterback and the success Nix had as a rookie in Denver. On paper, that logic tracks—New York is desperate for stability under center—but let’s not act like dropping Nix into last year’s Giants offense would have produced the same results.
Mosher explained his Nix to Giants re-draft process:
"Malik Nabers had a fantastic rookie season, but the choice here couldn’t be any more obvious. The New York Giants need a franchise quarterback, and Nix did enough as a rookie to get people excited. While he might not have the ceiling of Maye or Williams, he’s a solid quarterback who would be a massive upgrade for New York."
Yes, Nix was electric for the Broncos in his first season, proving a lot of doubters wrong. But the reality is, he landed in a much better situation than he ever would have in New York. The Giants’ offensive line was a disaster. Their playmakers outside of Nabers were borderline nonexistent. The idea that Nix could have walked into MetLife and magically saved the franchise pretty much ignores everything we know about how quarterbacks succeed in the NFL, let alone in New York.
Would Bo Nix have worked out for the Giants?
Let’s start with the basics: Denver’s offense was at least functional. New York’s wasn’t. Even if Nix was as polished as his biggest supporters claim, he wouldn’t have been working with much.
No Nabers. No real offensive line help. No consistent running game. No tight end. Instead, he would’ve had Darius Slayton as his No. 1 receiver and a backfield that, while promising, struggled at times.
And let’s not forget—the idea of taking Nix at No. 6 overall would have been viewed as a pretty big reach at the time. This wasn’t some surefire top-10 prospect. He was QB5 in the draft and ended up going 12th overall to Denver. Meanwhile, Nabers was widely regarded as a generational talent at receiver, and his record-breaking rookie season only proved that true.
This isn’t to say Nix isn’t a good quarterback—he was great for the Broncos. But in New York? Without weapons? With that offensive line? There’s no evidence to suggest he would have had anywhere near the same success.
There is no denying the Giants need a quarterback, but passing on an elite talent like Nabers to reach for a quarterback with several question marks would have been an even bigger mistake than the ones they’ve already made. We'll never know if he would have worked out for the G-Men, but this feels like a bit of a reach.