Malik Nabers: Off-field bond with Jameis Winston fueling on-field production

New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers has posted consecutive games with more than 100 receiving yards and said the production has come from a growing on-field connection with quarterback Jameis Winston.

Nabers said the foundation was already in place before Winston became the starter. The two have long shared a personal relationship away from football, which made the recent work easier once they began spending extra time together in practice.

“Well, me and Jameis always had a great relationship, just personally, just outside of the field,” Nabers told reporters on Thursday. “So, I feel like that’s where you really start off is when you have a relationship outside the field, when you understand what somebody else is fighting for when they go home and their story, their backstory. It just winds up just connecting on the field.”

That connection has required daily work. Nabers said the key has been giving Winston looks in practice, talking through coverages, and understanding what the quarterback wants him to do against specific looks so the ball can get there.

He also described an honest dynamic that has helped both players. Nabers said he does not want yes-men around him and that Winston is willing to tell him when he is right and when he is wrong.

“Yeah, I feel like you don’t need no yes men around you,” Nabers said. “I feel like as Jameis, when you are right, he’s going to tell you right, but he’s going to also tell you when you’re wrong. And he’s going to express that, and he’s going to let you know how he feels about what you’re saying. So, it’s not anybody butting heads. He just wants to let you know that there is a side to being right and there’s a side to being wrong.”

Nabers called it a brotherly relationship built on awareness that neither player is always correct. He said that mutual understanding of what the other is thinking has produced better results on the field.

Since Winston took over as the starter, Nabers has also watched how the veteran handles ups and downs. He said Winston lifts teammates, including himself, regardless of the situation and repeatedly tells players to flush the previous play and stay present.

“I would say any up or down, he’s going to stay here. When we’re down, he’s going to lift everybody up,” Nabers said. “Even when he’s down, he’s lifting himself up out here, talking to himself on the sideline. He’s always implementing the same thing. If I’m not on my game, he’s always telling me, ‘Look, come on, next play, flush it. Let’s go out. Cause I need you at the end of the game.’”

Nabers said he has heard Winston deliver the same message to others, including wide receiver Darnell Mooney, and has seen him talk to himself on the sideline after mistakes in an effort to stay in rhythm. The relationship remains a work in progress, but Nabers said the open communication and shared approach have already shown results in his recent production.