Malik Nabers knew it was time to make his return during pregame warmups

Wide receiver Malik Nabers made his first appearance in the Giants’ lineup in almost a year when he took the field against the Cowboys on Sunday night.

Nabers tore his ACL last September and he remained noncommittal about playing all the way through the week. After the 28-20 win, Nabers said he was up in the air all the way through pregame warmups and that he told his family not to come to the game because he didn’t want to disappoint them by not playing.

“The deciding factor was just when I got out there, I just felt good,” Nabers said after the game. “I felt good. I got a little chill through my body and I was like, “Yeah, it’s time. It’s time.”

Quarterback Jaxson Dart said in his press conference that head coach John Harbaugh tackled Nabers during a walkthrough earlier in the day to show the wideout that he was ready. It took a little longer for Nabers to be convinced, but Dart was happy that the outcome allowed him to throw the ball to his top target.

“It was great, it was great. He’s just a guy where, no matter what the coverage is, no matter who they put out there on him, you have all the confidence in the world that he’s going to make a play,” Dart said.

Nabers finished the day with six catches for 69 yards and the Giants will be looking for even bigger numbers now that he’s got the first game back under his belt.