The New York Giants faithful had reason for hope on Sunday, as it was the first official start for rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart. The vibes were positive for once, especially after Dart led the team to a touchdown on their first drive on a 15-yard run in the red zone.
But those positive feelings from Giants fans ended quickly just before halftime.
Wide receiver Malik Nabers was injured after attempting a deep catch downfield on a throw from Dart. Nabers was in considerable pain, as he grabbed at his right knee. when looking at the replay, it appeared his knee bent as he jumped up for the catch attempt. Nabers was carted off of the field while his teammates surrounded him. Nabers put a towel over his head as he was carted into the tunnel.
Malik Nabers carted off with apparent knee injury in Giants vs. Chargers game
UPDATE (2:52 p.m. ET): Malik Nabers was officially ruled out for the rest of the game with a knee injury. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported that Nabers is "believed" to have torn his ACL. Of course, that would rule Nabers out for the remainder of the season.
#Giants WR Malik Nabers is believed to have torn his ACL, per me and @TomPelissero. A crushing blow. pic.twitter.com/yF4tTnez3l
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 28, 2025
This is the last thing the Giants needed to deal with. Nabers is easily the team's best player on offense. He can singlehandedly make a difference in the passing game, as evidenced by what he was able to do a couple of weeks ago against the Dallas Cowboys.
But Giants fans were actually excited to see the Dart-Nabers connection in full force in the rookie's NFL debut. Unfortunately, fans got to see a little less than two quarters of the duo together.
Before the injury, Nabers hauled in two of his three targets from Dart for 20 yards. Entering the game, Nabers had recorded 16 receptions for 251 yards and two touchdowns on 32 targets.
Giants fans are certainly hoping that the injury isn't as serious as it looks. If Nabers is to miss significant time, an already bad season for the Giants would get infinitely worse.
UPDATE (3:53 p.m.ET): ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that Nabers is set to undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of his injury. But, the belief is that Nabers suffered a torn ACL.