The wide receivers room for the NY Giants just got a little deeper, and it got a lot better, as on Thursday night with the No. 6 overall pick, Malik Nabers was the team’s selection. In most of the mock drafts, Nabers was the guy many anticipated for the Giants.
Some of Nabers new teammates were extremely excited to get him onto the team and into the fold. This includes former Giants third-round pick Jalin Hyatt, who can't wait to take the field with Nabers one Week 1 rolls around.
We putting it up this year no cap
— Jalin Hyatt (@jalinhyatt) April 26, 2024
Giants players are fired up for the Malik Nabers draft pick by Joe Schoen
Hyatt wasn’t the only Giants wide receiver to show his excitement over the pick of Nabers, as Wan’Dale Robinson, the team’s second-round pick from 2022, also shared Hyatt’s excitement on social media. Yup, it's safe to say both Robinson and Hyatt are expecting big things from Nabers:
ain’t we😭 https://t.co/rDEHVwwyd3
— Wan’Dale Robinson (@wanda1erobinson) April 26, 2024
The Giants haven’t had a 1,000-yard wide receiver on their team since Odell Beckham Jr. going back to the 2018 season, so getting an impact receiver on the team like Nabers was crucial. Hyatt didn’t have the kind of impact in his rookie campaign that the Giants had hoped, as he only had 23 catches for 373 yards and no touchdowns. Robinson, who returned to the team after missing time from a torn ACL during his rookie year in 2022, had 60 catches for 525 yards and one touchdown.
The Giants leading receiver in 2023 was Darius Slayton, who had 50 catches for 770 yards and four touchdowns. Slayton has been the Giants leading receiver for four out of the five seasons he’s been on the team, but he has also never reached beyond 800 yards receiving with the Giants. A year ago, the Giants traded for Darren Waller, who had 52 catches for 552 yards and one touchdown in 12 games played. Waller not only missed time in 2023 due to injury, but his status for 2024 is up in the air, as he is considering retirement. Thus, the selection of Nabers was crucial for the Giants heading into the 2024 season.
Nabers had 89 catches for 1,569 yards and 14 touchdowns for LSU in 2023. The year before, Nabers had 72 catches for 1,017 yards and three touchdowns. For the Giants sake, they are hoping for Nabers' success and talents to translate from college to the pros. There are high expectations for this kid, but a lot of people, including Hyatt and Robinson, are confident he'll live up to the hype.