Rookie Review: Why Malik Nabers is the Best WR in Fantasy Football
Malik Nabers 2025 Outlook: The Path To WR1
Malik Nabers took the league by storm, emerging to stardom right off the bat. With his home run playmaking ability and lightning speed, he was electrifying every time he touched the ball and shined as the lone bright spot in a bleak New York Giants offense. But what if I told you Nabers didn’t even touch what could’ve been. There were plenty of missed opportunities due to poor quarterback performance that could’ve boosted his incredible numbers even more. That changes in 2025. With the season on the horizon, the Giants have seemingly cemented their quarterback room. This room is the key to Nabers building onto his successful rookie season and reaching even higher heights, such as the overall WR1 in fantasy football. Although it may seem far fetched, Nabers is in a great position to achieve this.
Quarterback Upgrade
The Giants went into this offseason with a clear goal in mind; revamp the quarterback room. They flipped the room upside down, bringing in Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston and Jaxson Dart. It may not seem ideal, but it’s a drastic upgrade from last season and meshes well with Nabers’ stengths.
The Giants quarterback room last season was incompetent and it was truly impressive Nabers was able to perform despite the quarterback play holding him back. There was a frustrating amount of missed opportunities where Nabers was open but faced inaccuracy or wasn’t even being looked at. Daniel Jones’ 6.1 yards per attempt and 79.4 passer rating both ranked 35th. Drew Lock was even worse with 5.9 yards per attempt and 75.5 passer rating. Compared to the Giants new quarterbacks, there’s a notable upgrade. Russell Wilson had 7.4 yards per attempt and a 95.6 passer rating. Jameis Winston had 7.2 yards per attempt, a 80.6 passer rating and helped Jerry Jeudy become one of the most sought after receivers in fantasy football while he was starting.
Every metric, stat and eye test tells the same story; the quarterback room is a significantly better situation this season. It still isn’t ideal as Winston and Wilson are still below average quarterbacks at best but it’s a big upgrade from Lock and Jones who aren’t capable starters.
There is a possibility Jaxson Dart starts, however it’s unlikely Brian Daboll throws a raw rookie into the deep end without getting his feet wet first, especially when they’ve signed two veterans.The Giants offense probably won’t be good with any of their quarterbacks (unless Nabers keeps them afloat), but it’ll be smoother sailing with the veterans. If Dart does start, Nabers’ fantasy value takes a slight hit. With a rookie steering the ship, his floor and ceiling worsen and he’ll likely drop to a fringe first round-second round pick, rather than a guaranteed mid-first round pick he currently resides at. However, like I mentioned before, it’s still unlikely Dart gets the start.
Deep Threat Activation
Coming out of college, Nabers made headlines with his elite athleticism that allowed him to stretch the field and be a prominent deep threat. But his big play ability was hindered by the quarterbacks.
The Giants were outright atrocious when it came to throwing the ball downfield. On passes over 20 air yards, Jones had a 20.7 completion percentage. Lock had a 15 completion percentage and 24.8 passer rating. Brian Daboll knew how bad it was so he had to play a conservative offense, heavily relying on checkdowns and not being aggressive. Jones only had 7.3 air yards per attempt while Lock had only 7.1. Nabers’ best trait, his explosive playmaking ability, wasn’t being utilized. They tried to get the ball to him downfield, but it didn’t work. Nabers ranked 9th in deep targets with 24. Only 5 of them were completed. That’s an atrocious 20.8 catch rate which ranked 73rd among receivers. That shouldn’t be the case anymore.
Russell Wilson possesses one of the best deep balls in the league, ranking 2nd in completion percentage and 4th in passer rating on deep throws. Wilson averaged 59 yards on 4 deep throws per game. Over a 17 game pace, he would’ve had 1,010 yards and 68 attempts, both ranking 2nd. Winston isn’t scared to let it fly either, ranking 3rd in air yards per attempt. Having these two should allow Nabers to unleash his deep threat prowess. He’s capable of being an elite deep threat when he’s not limited by his quarterbacks.
Volume
Nabers led the league in targets per game last season. The Giants made it clear putting the ball in his hands was their biggest priority and I doubt that changes. The Giants didn’t bring in any notable extra competition to the receiver room so Nabers should maintain similar volume from last season. Despite missing a couple games, Nabers was 2nd in total targets. Expect him to jump to 1st this season.
Wrap Up
Nabers enjoyed an elite rookie season. He was separating at will with his elite stop-start speed and change of direction. He was one of the best playmaker after the catch, ranking 9th in YAC per game. His biggest weakness is his inconsistent hands, dropping passes a bit too much. But even this isn’t a huge weakness since he showed flashes of making catches outside of his frame and winning 50/50 contested throws. He’s truly the entire package. He has the talent, volume, efficiency and got a quarterback upgrade.
Fantasy Value
The Redraft WR1 conversation often boils down to Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson and Ceedee Lamb. Why Nabers isn’t thrown into that conversation is puzzling. Nabers possesses all of the pieces necessary to top the rest. He has elite volume and the Giants brought in nobody threatening to overtake it. He has an aggressive quarterback that’s capable of pushing the ball downfield. If they’re able to finally capitalize on Nabers’ big play ability (which they should be), he’ll be the Redraft WR1. And given how young he is, he should be drafted as the WR1 in dynasty as well.
