Despite not being heavily favored, the Dallas Cowboys are expected to take care of business against the New York Giants this Sunday night. We're not breaking any news by saying that Cowboys fans would prefer a world in which Giants star wide receiver Malik Nabers did not suit up, but he seems to be trending toward playing.
John Harbaugh told reporters on Wednesday that Nabers was a full participant in practice. He stopped short of confirming that Nabers would play, but being a full participant on the first injury report of the week is usually a pretty strong indicator. Nabers being active would change the outlook for this primetime matchup.
Malik Nabers torched the Cowboys last season
The Cowboys' defense looks night and day compared to last season, but it bears mentioning that Nabers had his way against Dallas before his season-ending knee injury. In the Week 2 matchup, Nabers caught nine of 13 targets for 167 yards and two touchdowns.
Yes, more than half of Dallas' starting defense from 2025 is currently unemployed, but Nabers is a scale-tipping player, and the Cowboys' cornerback room arguably has more questions than any other position on the defensive side of the ball. What's your confidence level in Cobie Durant, Shavon Revel or DaRon Bland shutting down or even limiting Nabers?
It's not like last season was a one-off. Nabers torched Dallas as a rookie in 2024, catching 20 of 28 targets for 183 yards, meaning he's piled up 351 receiving yards in three career games against the Cowboys.
Fantasy outlook: If you're a fantasy manager, start Nabers with confidence. Thank us later.
Nabers may not have a full workload in Week 1
The silver lining for Dallas is that all of that production hasn't translated to the scoreboard. The Giants are 0-3 in those games, and Nabers may not be fully unleashed right away in his first game back from a major knee injury that required multiple surgeries.
“I think he’s ready to go, man,” John Harbaugh said of Nabers, via SNY Giants. “It’s still four days until we play. If he’s ready to go, and he feels like he’s ready to go, then he’ll play. If he’s not ready, then he won’t play.”
That is either a head coach tempering expectations for Nabers' return or engaging in some good old-fashioned media gamesmanship to keep the Cowboys guessing. Maybe both. Either way, Dallas can't afford to assume it will see anything less than the full Nabers experience on Sunday night. Given what he's done to this secondary in the past, Christian Parker's defense has to prepare as if there won't be any restrictions.
Nabers can impact the game in more ways than one
Even if he's not running roughshod, Nabers' presence alone could unlock the Giants' offense just from the attention he'll command. The Cowboys will still have to worry about Darnell Mooney, Malachi Fields and Isaiah Likely. Not the most exciting complementary pieces you've ever seen, but they become a lot more dangerous when Nabers is pulling extra defenders his way and creating favorable matchups elsewhere.
To be clear, the Cowboys are still expected to win the game. But if you were already thinking about predicting an upset, Nabers' status may be enough to push you over the edge and lean fully into the Giants pulling it off.
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