Football
For about five days, we had unreal expectations for Malik Nabers this season with the thought of the second-year receiver catching passes from Jameis Winston. But that dream is most likely over now that the Giants signed Russell Wilson on Tuesday to a one-year deal worth up to $21 million.
It’s doubtful Winston will play much in 2025, and the Giants could still select a rookie quarterback in the NFL Draft since they have the No. 3 overall selection. But it appears like Wilson will be the starter for the Giants in Week 1, while Winston will be No. 2 on the depth chart.
Fantasy managers should have minimal expectations for Wilson, even if he’s expected to start every game this season. He’s 36 (37 in November) and coming off a mediocre campaign with the Steelers in 2024.
Wilson averaged 17.7 Fantasy points per game in 11 games in the regular season. He completed 214 of 336 passes for 2,482 yards, 16 touchdowns and five interceptions, and he added 43 carries for 155 yards and two touchdowns, with four lost fumbles.
Wilson scored more than 20 Fantasy points just three times last season, but he also had 22 Fantasy points in the playoff loss to Baltimore. He’s not worth drafting in one-quarterback leagues, and he’s just a mid-round selection in Superflex and two-quarterback formats.
Keep in mind that Wilson has averaged fewer than 20 Fantasy points per game for three years in a row (two seasons in Denver and one in Pittsburgh) since leaving Seattle after the 2021 campaign. But his No. 1 job, at least for Fantasy managers, is getting Nabers the ball — a lot.
We knew Winston would do that given his history, but Wilson has a good track record with his top receivers as well. Prior to 2024, Wilson helped several receivers have standout campaigns, including DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Doug Baldwin in Seattle, as well as Courtland Sutton in Denver.
And last season, Wilson was great for George Pickens when they first started playing together. Pickens scored at least 16.4 PPR points in four of his first six games with Wilson under center.
Nabers is coming off an excellent rookie season in 2024 where he caught 109 passes for 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns on 170 targets in 15 games. He averaged 17.7 PPR points per game, and he did that with Daniel Jones, Drew Lock, Tommy DeVito and Tim Boyle at quarterback.
Wilson is clearly an upgrade over all of those quarterbacks — as is Winston. And then we’ll see if the Giants select a quarterback in the NFL Draft.
For now, Nabers is worth drafting toward the back end of Round 1 or the beginning of Round 2 in all leagues. The Giants could also add a receiver in the NFL Draft for competition — maybe Travis Hunter at No. 3 overall? — but we can address that later in the offseason.
The addition of Wilson and Winston is an upgrade for Nabers heading into 2025. It should also help Wan’Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton, but those receivers are only worth late-round picks in the majority of leagues.
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