The New York Giants are Third in NFL in dropped passes (26) this season, behind only the Cleveland Browns (31) and Green Bay Packers (28).
The Browns solved their problem by dealing Amari Cooper to Buffalo at the trade deadline. He leads the league with 11 drops. Tight end David Njoku and wide receiver Jerry Jeudy each have five drops.
Two of the Packers' young wideouts are in the top five – Dontayvion Wicks (8) and Jayden Reed (7). Romeo Doubs, another talented young wideout, has six drops.
That explains the problems these two teams have with drops. What's the Giants' deal?
Earlier this season, offensive coordinator Mike Kafka addressed the declines with the media.
“It's a combination of things. It could be a breakup. It could be protection. It could be the ball placement. It could just be a lack of concentration,” he said. “So there are a lot of things that play into it. Every piece is just a little bit different. But we always go back to our basics and how can we improve those in an individual exercise, in a group session, in a team exercise, in a live exercise, in a rapid exercise? So we go through that process.”
Star rookie wideout Malik Nabers leads the team with seven drops, followed by another rookie, tight end Theo Johnson (5).
Nabers has told the media that absences are not a major concern for him, even though his exit in the fourth loss to Washington earlier this season effectively cost the team a likely win.
“I don’t care about drops,” Nabers said after the Giants’ 27-20 loss to Dallas on Thanksgiving. “I mean, it's just part of football. I don't care if I drop the ball six times. Keep throwing me the ball.”
“I think it comes from the right place,” teammate Darius Slayton said this week of Nabers’ take on drops.
And Slayton would know. Here too, the drops bothered him for a while.
“At the same time, of course, it’s our job to catch the ball when it comes to us. So obviously he knows he has to make some of those plays,” he said.
Slayton did his best to capture his young teammate's demeanor and intentions. Nabers has been open about his behavior lately, questioning his coaches and voicing his frustrations in the media.
Still, he has a job to do, and Slayton has taken it upon himself to attribute Nabers' comments to his youth and inexperience.
“I think it comes from the right place. But at the same time you have to do your best not to drop the ball and of course I know that,” he said.
