Field Yates explains predicted fit between New York Giants, Malik Nabers
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Field Yates predicted the New York Giants will select wide receiver Malik Nabers with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Yates had nothing but good thing things to say about the LSU standout.
“The most explosive player in entire draft,” Yates said of Nabers. “LSU wide receiver who had 27 forced missed tackles just a year ago. The way that he changes the dimensions of this offense. It is a teams that — A — is looking for wide receivers at the top of their depth chart and — B— looking for players that actually you.
“I do think that the Giants will think long and hard about moving up the board to potentially select JJ McCarthy but based off of Minnesota’s aggressive move to get up to pick No. 5, I ended up with Malik Nabers and sort of banking on, or sort of hoping, that Daniel Jones could find close to that 2022 form once again in 2024.”
Nabers is a consensus top-three wide receiver in the NFL Draft. He caught a combined 189 passes over three seasons at LSU, totaling 3,000 yards and 21 touchdowns. His 3,003 career receiving yards are the most in LSU history; a prestigious honor for such a storied program.
Nabers produced the bulk of his jaw-dropping numbers this past season when he notched career-bests of 89 receptions for 1,569 yards and 14 TDs. Further, the former four-star prospect boasted 17.6 yards per catch.
He’d be a perfect fit for the Giants, which desperately needed a threat out wide last season. In the 2023 campaign, the franchise only recorded 169.8 passing yards per game, the second-least in the NFL.
Joel Klatt echoes praise for Malik Nabers
Yates isn’t the only insider high on Nabers’ potential. FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt raved about Nabers in March.
“Nabers is sensational,” Klatt said. “He’s really explosive down the field, and that’s something that I think is becoming more and more common in college football. It was the short passing game for a long time, but you’re starting to see guys push the ball a little bit and the reason is that these guys on the outside they are big and they’re athletic. Nabers is 6-foot, 200 pounds.
“These guys present issues for defensive backs. Nabers was maybe the most explosive guy in the country. He led the country with 17 catches of over 30 yards, he had nine 100-yard games and he was a big reason why Jayden Daniels had such a productive season and ultimately won the Heisman trophy.”