Nabers Made the Call in a Pregame Workout, Played 36 of 68 Snaps and Says the Recovery 'Is Not Done'
Harbaugh said Nabers was medically cleared and the decision was his. Nabers caught six passes for 69 yards on a team-high nine targets in the 28-20 win over Dallas, his first game since tearing his ACL last September.
Malik Nabers decided to play in Sunday night's 28-20 win over the Cowboys after a pregame workout, then caught six passes for 69 yards on a team-high nine targets in his first game since tearing his ACL on Sept. 28, 2025.
Nabers, listed as questionable after three full practices, went out about two hours before kickoff with rehabilitation and return-to-play coordinator Allison Boudreau, stretched, ran drills and gave a thumbs-up, ESPN's Jordan Raanan reported. John Harbaugh put the decision at "about three hours before the game, maybe two and a half."
"It was his call," Harbaugh said at his postgame news conference. "He had been cleared medically, but he had to feel right."
Nabers told reporters after the game he had practiced all week but "never got the game feeling."
He played 36 of the Giants' 68 offensive snaps, 11 of them called runs, per Raanan.
Jaxson Dart said after the game that Harbaugh tackled Nabers during Sunday's walk-through, in video posted by SNY.
Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post wrote that Harbaugh did it because he knew Nabers was hesitant about taking his first hit. Nabers said his family did not attend because he did not want to let them down if he decided not to play, Dunleavy wrote. Dart gave Nabers the ball from the final kneel-down, NorthJersey.com's Art Stapleton reported.
Nabers said he will see how he feels once the adrenaline wears off. "The recovery process is not done," he said. The Giants play at the Los Angeles Rams next Monday night, Sept. 21.