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Jordan Raanan, ESPN Staff Writer
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers didn’t remember the end of the play two weeks ago when he suffered a concussion against the Dallas Cowboys. The video, he said, showed him he was unconscious on the play.
The whole situation was “scary,” according to the rookie wide receiver.
Nabers, who is set to return this weekend when the Giants host the Philadelphia Eagles, has missed the past two games with a concussion suffered Oct. 3 when his face hit the turf hard as he tried to corral a pass from quarterback Daniel Jones.
“It was scary when I couldn’t remember what happened,” Nabers said. “I can’t remember the last play I was in, so yeah, it was kind of scary.
“Last thing I remember was [Jones] throwing me the ball. That was it.”
Nabers said he experienced headaches and throbbing in his head after the injury. He didn’t specify any other symptoms. It was his first known concussion.
The seventh pick in this year’s draft was cleared from the concussion protocol Thursday, two weeks to the day after suffering the injury. He was limited in practice Friday because of a groin problem that he says dates to college. The Giants don’t seem to think it will be a problem.
Coach Brian Daboll said the groin “tightened up” on Nabers during Thursday’s practice. So the team simply took precaution. Nabers was not given an injury designation for Sunday and expects to be able to handle whatever workload the game plan dictates.
Running back Devin Singletary (groin) also will return to face the Eagles. Singletary has missed the past two games as well.
Meanwhile, defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence (hip) and outside linebacker Brian Burns (groin) are officially listed as questionable for Sunday. But both have insisted throughout the week that they will play.
Nabers’ return comes after two weeks of being monitored closely, on and off the field. He took criticism during that time on social media for attending a Travis Scott concert with teammate Isaiah Simmons while still in the protocol.
Nabers said Friday that he informed the Giants before attending the concert. He declined to discuss the team’s specific reaction.
“Yeah, I’m going to always be myself,” he said. “I mean, that’s the life that I chose to live. It’s what comes with the job. But at the end of the day, I still got my own life. I still got my own personal life, so I’m going to continue to have my own personal life. I’m going to still continue to watch my back and I’m going to still continue to have my personal life.”
Nabers is learning quickly that he’s in the spotlight playing in New York. Everyone seems to have an opinion.
He mentioned X (formerly Twitter) and acknowledged not being able to fully avoid the outside commentary about attending the concert. Some of it gets sent to his phone by friends and family.
He tries not to be affected much by the criticism.
“I mean, that’s their business. If they researched about what caused a concussion, what makes it worse, and on the internet if they say it’s the lights, hearing [loud noises], then that’s on them,” Nabers said. “I didn’t face anything with the lights. They asked me if I had problem with lights, I told them no. Having problems with the sound, I told them no. … I’ve been playing loud music since I’ve known [about] the concussion in the car. I go out with the lights on. I played the game with lights. So I mean, I didn’t have anything with my eyes. It wasn’t making my head hurt. Sound wasn’t making my head hurt. So I was fine.”
Nabers said he was most worried about getting right and returning to the field.
He just had to be patient while missing two games and watching his team score only one touchdown in Sunday night’s 17-7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“My health is really the most important thing,” Nabers said. “So I really wasn’t frustrated. It was just getting back out there when I feel right.”
That time is now.
