Malik Nabers injury update: Here’s how close Giants WR is to returning

The Giants’ offense badly needs star wide receiver Malik Nabers.

That much has been evident through 13 training camp practices, with one session remaining before Saturday’s preseason opener against the Vikings.

Nabers, who is recovering from a torn ACL, won’t play in that game. He is still limited to doing just position drills in practice. And he is moving quite well in those settings.

So how close is Nabers — who maybe, just maybe will be ready for Week 1 — to returning to full practice participation?

Giants coach John Harbaugh provided a positive update after Wednesday’s practice, as he looked toward next week.

“He’s kind of exactly where he’s been,” Harbaugh said. “And we’re looking towards soon ramping him up into some group periods and perhaps some team periods. Maybe next week. We’ll see. He’s doing great. He’s working hard. Spirits are high.”

Harbaugh added, “We’ll see where we’re at next week.”

The Giants have two practices next week, on Monday and Tuesday, coming out of their preseason opener. Then they travel to Miami for a joint practice Thursday with the Dolphins, in advance of the teams’ second preseason game, Saturday afternoon in South Florida.

So the Giants have three practices next week, plus that preseason game. After that, they have three practices leading into their preseason finale against the Jets. So the clock is ticking toward Week 1.

Of course, that game is Sept. 13 against the Cowboys. The Giants have four practices in between their preseason finale and the start of Week 1 preparations, which will begin in earnest on Sept. 7 — Labor Day.

This Nabers-related reality also lingers: Even if he does return for Week 1, there are no guarantees he will be his usual dominant self in that game — or perhaps even the next few games after it.

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