Maybe the reason that head coach Brian Daboll hasn’t yet committed to being the Giants’ offensive play-caller is that he is saving the job for Malik Nabers.
Just kidding. Sort of.
Nabers said that the 60-yard connection between him and Daniel Jones during Friday’s practice was the result of Daboll asking the rookie receiver what play he wanted to call in that spot.
Daboll took over play-calling from third-year offensive coordinator Mike Kafka in the spring and has remained the voice in Jones’ ear during training camp without making his plan official.
“I said, ‘Well, let’s throw a go ball,’ ” Nabers said. “And Daniel came up to me, like, ‘What do you want? You want to check out of the press [coverage]?’ I said, ‘Nah. Just throw it up.’ He was like, ‘I got you.’ The chemistry showed.”
So did the Giants’ confidence in their first-round pick, who was targeted seven times during the practice.
“It shows how much trust he has to give me the ball in open space or just let me run any route I want,” Nabers said. “To have a head coach that’s got trust in you when you come into the third day of training camp, they try to understand how good of a player I am.”
The Giants are well aware of Nabers’ talents.
Not only was Daboll fawning over Nabers’ “dawg” mentality during the pre-draft process, but receivers coach Mike Groh left a joint Xs and Os meeting with Marvin Harrison Jr., Rome Odunze and Nabers and told Giants owner John Mara that his preference was Nabers, as seen on HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”
Harrison was picked No. 4 by the Cardinals, Nabers was No. 6 and Odunze was No. 9 by the Bears.
“Groh is my guy,” Nabers said. “I guess when he watched my film, he saw how much athleticism I have getting a ball in open space, and I could be a great guy in this receiver room. So, to have that person in my receiver coach that trusts me before he even got me here, sky’s the limit for me.”
Daboll explained the curious decision to rotate CB Tre Hawkins in with the first-team defense over No. 1 cornerback Deonte Banks — instead of creating a position battle with Cor’Dale Flott — as “seeing different matchups.”
TE Lawrence Cager impressed Daboll with one of the best offseasons between the end of last season and the end of spring workouts. Cager has picked up where he left off in training camp.
“He’s playing faster,” Daboll said. “I think he’s absorbed what he needs to do in terms of understanding all the play calls — the nuances, experience in the system.”And I think [tight ends coach] Tim Kelly has done a great job.”
Former Giants safety Jabrill Peppers agreed to an extension Friday reportedly worth three years, $30 million with the Patriots.
The Giants had Peppers, Julian Love (Seahawks) and Xavier McKinney (Packers) as safeties on rookie contracts in 2020-21.
All left as free agents and all have signed contracts this offseason worth a combined maximum of $133 million.
