Wide Receiver Malik Nabers
September 12, 2024
Q: What is this game like for you being on the opposite side of (Commanders quarterback) Jayden Daniels?
MALIK NABERS: It's the same football game. It's just we're on different teams.
Q: What has it been like between you guys this week? Are you guys in constant contact? Are you guys talking to each other? You guys shut it down this week?
MALIK NABERS: The relationship is still a brotherly relationship, so what we do is what our job is, but we’ve got a different relationship off the field.
Q: What did you take out of Sunday's game for yourself personally?
MALIK NABERS: Just another day to go out there and show what I can do.
Q: What did you maybe learn out of the game you just played?
MALIK NABERS: It's a lot of things to work on, a lot of things to get better at, continue to strive for greatness and just keep the weeks on going.
Q: What makes Jayden such a good quarterback?
MALIK NABERS: He's a smart quarterback, a great team leader. His running ability is great, arm talent is crazy, so I'm excited to see what he does this week.
Q: I think Jayden said he talked to you earlier this week. What are you guys’ kind of talking about? What's the discussion?
MALIK NABERS: We talk about the game, just talk about just football, but like I said, we’ve got a relationship off the field, so it's like we're going to talk smack when we play on the field, but off the field, it's a brotherly relationship.
Q: Have any of your defensive teammates come up to you and ask for inside information on him?
MALIK NABERS: Of course, yeah. That's something that you’ve got to share when you're going against your old teammate, but any way to get the win.
Q: Has the coaching staff?
MALIK NABERS: No, not the coaching staff.
Q: Can you appreciate how you guys helped each other get to where you are? Maybe if he's not as good as he is, you're not here, and if you're not as good as you are, he's not the second pick. Can you guys appreciate how much you helped each other?
MALIK NABERS: Yeah, for sure. Without him, I probably wouldn't be here right now, so having that guy as my quarterback, it took a lot of stress off me, so I took a lot of stress off him too getting open. But we’re in a different space right now, but it's still the same game.
Q: How eager are you to have a deep ball and make a play downfield? We saw it all summer, obviously not in the first game.
MALIK NABERS: I'm excited just to have the ball in my hands any way possible I can get it. If it's a deep ball, it's a deep ball, but whatever ways to give me the ball, I'm happy for it.
Q: I bet you're learning to be patient. I'm sure you probably want the ball in your hands all the time. I know the Giants fans probably want the ball in your hands all the time. How do you handle that, the flow of the game?
MALIK NABERS: It's not that you can really handle it. I mean the game is not going to always go how I want it to go. If I can have the ball in my hand 20 times, I would like that. But how many times the ball gets thrown my way, I can't tell you how many times I'm going to get the ball this game. The game is the game.
Q: How did practice go today?
MALIK NABERS: It went great. I got to move around a lot. It was a good day.
Q: Are you seeing signs of progress on the practice field this week from what you saw Sunday?
MALIK NABERS: Every day of practice you're always going to have progress. You’ve got to wait until game day to see how you actually play. Every day in practice is going to look good. You're going against the scout team, plays are going to look good, but it all matters when you're playing another team.
Q: What were you most satisfied with what you did last Sunday in your first go around?
MALIK NABERS: I didn't flinch. I kept running every route, got open, made some great catches, made some great plays, and showed my teammates, my quarterback and the coaches that they can trust in me.
Q: What were the things, conversely, that you would have wanted to do better that you worked on?
MALIK NABERS: Probably blocking more, probably understanding my assignment more.
Q: You've talked so much about your competitiveness. How did you process your first NFL loss and the way your team was beat?
MALIK NABERS: It took a few days, but this is the National Football League. You're going to lose. You're never going to have an undefeated season like you got in college. You're always going to lose a game, but it's how you bounce back the next week. It’s how you face adversity.
Q: What have you seen from the Commanders secondary on film?
MALIK NABERS: They’ve got a great secondary, they’ve got a lot of key factors in their defense that they like to put out on the field. But we're going to continue to do what we do.
Q: Have you gone up to (Head Coach Brian Daboll) Dabs and say, ‘you want me to call the first play’?
MALIK NABERS: No, I'm going to let Dabs handle all that.
