Malik Nabers tough week has him stewing on costly mistakes that couldve been the difference

One of the toughest weeks of Malik Nabers’ standout young NFL career was compounded by a “family emergency back home.” With the Giants in the facility Friday for meetings but not practice, Nabers said that he wasn’t in the locker room after Thursday’s game for personal reasons — not because of his frustrations after losing a fumble for the first time in three years and not preventing an interception on the final pass of a 24-21 loss to the Commanders.  Get texts from Paul Schwartz with all the latest Giants news and insights, exclusive to Sports+ subscribers.“You are thinking about plays that could’ve been the difference in the game,” Nabers said.

“That [fumble] could’ve been one of those.We could’ve got a field goal or a touchdown.

Sadly, went away just off a mistake I made.Just try to be better, and I’ll be better on protecting the football and having awareness of where I am.” Nabers is close friends with former LSU teammate Jayden Daniels, who improved to 4-0-1 against the Giants as Commanders quarterback. “It’s bugging me pretty bad,” Nabers said.

“He calls me all the time.He’s probably trying to call me right now.

But I can’t answer that phone call.” Nabers laid flat on his back on the turf at the end of the game after Rasul Douglas intercepted a jump ball.He always encourages his quarterbacks to just give him a chance, but J.J.

McCarthy could’ve thrown elsewhere against a zero blitz when the Giants needed to gain only 20 yards over the next 34 seconds to attempt a 50-yard field goal. “I saw the ball go up,” Nabers said.“I didn’t really see [Douglas] or where he was so I’m not really aware.

My head is looking up at the ball, even though he was driving on the ball.Just seeing how high the ball was and waiting for it to come down, made a jump to catch the ball and got hit, and he made a play.”  Sign up for Inside the Giants by Paul Schwartz, a weekly Sports+ exclusive.

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