EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – New York Giants rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers will not play on Sunday night against the Cincinnati Bengals because of a concussion, coach Brian Daboll said.
Nabers will miss his second straight game. He also didn’t play in last Sunday’s 29-20 win over the Seattle Seahawks.
“He’ll be doing stuff out of the field more like he was doing the last two days,” Daboll said. “He won’t make it [for Sunday].”
The No. 6 overall pick in this year’s draft remains in the concussion protocol, and did not practice this week.
Daboll would not say if Nabers was still experiencing any symptoms.
“I’ll leave that in-house,” he said. “But making progress, he’ll do some more than he did [Thursday], similar to probably the day before. Take it day by day.”
Darius Slayton will step into the No. 1 receiver spot for the second consecutive game. He had eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown in Seattle.
The Giants (2-3) could also be without running back Devin Singletary for the second straight week as well. He was limited in practice this week and Daboll seemed unsure before Friday’s practice where he stood.
Rookie Tyrone Tracy (129 rushing yards) filled in admirably in Seattle.
Nabers looked as if he had a chance to return earlier this week. He did some running on the side with a trainer Wednesday. But he did very little during the open portion of practice on Thursday when Daboll said he remained in the “same spot” in the protocol.
He likely needed to get into a practice in order to be ready for Sunday night.
“I’d say he’s got a pretty good concussion,” Daboll said. “I’m not going to get into the concussion protocol or anything like that. It’s a serious thing.”
The young playmaker did more on Friday. He was running sprints and even caught some passes during the open portion of practice.
Still, he was out of time. A player must do “club-based non-contact training drills” and get cleared by the team physical before an independent neurologist can clear them from the league-mandated concussion protocol.
The aim now will be to get back when the Giants host former running back Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles next week.
Nabers did not seem to get all that close this week, when he attended a Travis Scott concert on Wednesday at MetLife Stadium. That raised some questions.
Daboll would not say if he had any issues with his star wide receiver attending the concert while still in the protocol.
“I’ll keep that all in-house,” he said.
Daboll did say that Nabers did not violate any team rules.
The injury occurred when Nabers attempted to make a catch late in the fourth quarter near the sideline two weeks ago against the Dallas Cowboys. His face hit the ground as he tried to corral the pass and get his feet down. The Giants’ medical staff immediately attended to him while he was down on their sideline.
Nabers did not return to the game. Afterward, outside linebacker Brian Burns yelled across the locker room to the rookie asking if he was OK.
“Nah,” Nabers responded.
It has forced him to miss at least two games now and slowed an historic start to the season. Nabers became the first player in NFL history to record at least 25 receptions and three touchdowns in his first four NFL games.
The LSU product has 35 catches for 386 yards and three touchdowns this season.
