The NFL offseason forces football fans to look for the tiniest of clues in the most unexpected of places. Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox recently ranked New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers at No. 6 on his 2026 Comeback Player of the Year Award power rankings. Your first thought might be "it'd be cool if he won the award, but I don't really care." And I'm right there with you.
You see, it's not about him taking home any hardware, it's all about what it means for his recovery timeline. The No. 6 spot provides objective optimism for Giants fans during a summer already filled with injury anxiety. Nabers is working his way back from a 2025 torn ACL that derailed an absolutely electric rookie campaign.
But a second cleanup surgery earlier this offseason made his availability the biggest question mark on the roster as we get closer to training camp.
Head coach John Harbaugh has already told ESPN's Jordan Raanan that Nabers' timeline is "impossible to predict." Still, this CPOY conversation all but implies that the 22-year-old will be on the field, ready to go for Week 1. And boy, could this offense use his help, especially second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart, who could use a clear No. 1 weapon that instantly raises the offense's floor.
A healthy Malik Nabers solves the growing Giants injury panic
The urgency surrounding Nabers' recovery became even clearer over the weekend.
New York spent the offseason overhauling its uninspiring receiver room by adding veterans Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III in the early days of free agency. General manager Joe Schoen followed those signings by trading into the third round of the 2026 Draft to select Notre Dame’s Malachi Fields.
Friday's OTA session tested that depth immediately. Veteran wideout and kick returner Gunner Olszewski was seen getting carted off the field after tearing his Achilles, ending his 2026 season before camp even began.
The injury forced Big Blue to spring into action. Not three days later, on Monday, the Giants brought in free agents JuJu Smith-Schuster, Braxton Berrios, and Odell Beckham Jr. for workouts to address their growing depth issue.
Each of those vets brings something a little different to the receiver room, but a healthy Nabers brings the type of skill set that those options simply can't replicate... at least, not at this point in their careers.
New York's injury concerns are growing at an alarming rate. Nabers and Olszewski aren't the only ones. Fan favorite Cam Skattebo is still coming back from a season-ending dislocated ankle suffered in Week 8 last year. And priority UDFA cornerback Thaddeus Dixon and veteran defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris are already out with torn Achilles themselves. It's getting strange out here.
The look of the offense changes completely if Leek dodges camp setbacks and plays Week 1. Fans will be watching closely because his health basically dictates how far Big Blue will go in 2026. Here's to hoping he wins CPOY.
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