Cowboys report no injuries, Nabers still uncertain for opener
New York's passing game is a practice-report tightrope eight days from Dallas, and the team on the other sideline has nothing to show for its own injury report.
Nabers still isn't saying yes, and Dallas has nothing to hide
Malik Nabers went through the same question this week that he's dodged since camp opened, and gave the same careful answer. "I feel pretty good. I feel real good, to be honest," Nabers said, before adding the part that matters: "there are still some things that you're going to have to check off the box for you to participate," per CBS Sports. Coach John Harbaugh sounds more sure than his own receiver does — he's called it "reasonable to assume" Nabers plays Dallas — and Nabers did work individual and full-team drills at Wednesday's practice, Connor Hughes of SNY.tv reports.
He's not the only name on the practice report heading into the opener. Tyrone Tracy Jr. (neck) was back in a non-contact jersey Tuesday, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports, and tight end Theo Johnson (shoulder) wore the same jersey Monday, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. Korie Black landed on injured reserve with a return designation, the team's official site reports, and Isaiah Likely is being floated by ESPN's Dan Graziano as the fallback option at receiver if Nabers isn't full-go. Across the field, Dallas walks in with the opposite problem: the NFL's official Week 1 injury report lists the Cowboys with no game-status players at all, a rare case where the health question in a Week 1 opener belongs to only one sideline.
Cowboys’ camp has lacked drama, which has added expectations with the season opening next Sunday night against the Giants. Cc: @msmallmon 🎧 t.co/PdndR23tRD
Preseason closes 2-1, and Najee Harris finally gets back on the field
The preseason wrapped up 2-1 with a 23-6 win over the Jets on August 28, sandwiched around the August 15 opening loss to the Vikings and the August 22 blowout at Miami. The real headline wasn't the scoreboard — it was Harris getting his first game snaps since tearing his Achilles 11 months ago, carrying 11 times for 39 yards and adding a 20-yard catch on his only target.
Jets23-6
Dolphins26-3
Vikings10-13Beckham caught 3 of 6 targets for 53 yards in that finale, and Braxton Berrios chipped in a 15-yard reception and a 10-yard punt return, though he also lost a fumble. Tyrone Tracy Jr. punched in a touchdown before leaving with a stinger — not believed serious, per Dan Duggan of The Athletic — now carrying a questionable tag into the opener.
The tidiest storyline of the night belonged to a kicker. Zvada capped a perfect preseason by going 3-for-3 in the finale — field goals from 23, 46 and 53 yards — after converting every field goal and extra point he attempted all preseason. "He'll win the job. He'll be the kicker," Harbaugh said afterward, closing out a camp battle with Ben Sauls.
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It's official on two fronts. Beckham made the Giants' initial 53-man roster after a summer coach John Harbaugh kept praising out loud — "he deserves credit for that," Harbaugh said after the preseason finale — and this week he got his old number back too, with Jalin Hyatt's move to the practice squad freeing up No. 13. Slayton also made the initial 53, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post reports, and GM Joe Schoen summed up the group Tuesday on the club's own account: "I feel good about where we are."
The churn under those two headline spots kept going Thursday. The Giants released DT Ben Barton and signed linebacker Malik Harrison to the practice squad, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com reports — Harrison is a seven-year veteran with 215 career tackles and 43 starts, released by Pittsburgh on Sunday, who Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com says is signing "with the goal to contribute early." It's the same room that already cut 8 players in final trims, Evan Neal notably among them after a summer spent bouncing from tackle to guard without ever playing a snap there, per Raanan.
Dallas brings a full offense to MetLife, daring a rebuilt Giants defense to prove itself
Sunday night vs. the Cowboys is what the whole preseason has been building toward, and Dallas arrives at 2-1 in its own exhibition slate after closing with a loss to the Saints, 27-24. The Cowboys return an offense that put up points all summer behind Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and Javonte Williams, and it's the unit that will meet a Giants defense with almost none of the same faces as a year ago — new coordinator Denard Wilson, new tackle DJ Reader, new end Shelby Harris, and a linebacker room now built around Tremaine Edmunds and first-round rookie Arvell Reese. It's also the eighth time since 2006 that these two clubs have opened a season against each other, per the Giants' own site.
The number says New York is still the underdog in its own building: the line opened with Dallas favored by 2.5 points, with the total set at 48.5. Sunday, September 13 at 8:20 PM is the tip-off for a rivalry game dressed up as a Week 1 opener, and for a Giants team that hasn't taken a real snap that counts since January, it's as good a measuring stick as they could've drawn.