Malik Nabers is good at football.
The Cleveland Browns learned the hard way on Sunday, losing 21-15, thanks in large part to Nabers.
The New York Giants’ rookie wide receiver made NFL history by catching several spectacular balls and scoring two touchdowns in the first half of Sunday’s game against the Browns. Cleveland struggled in the second half and was unable to make up the deficit created by Nabers.
Nabers set up his first touchdown with an incredible sideline grab that put New York in the red zone in a 7-7 game in the second quarter. On second-and-8, Giants quarterback Daniel Jones took Nabers’ go route down the left sideline while Browns cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. was in single coverage.
Emerson was in tight coverage on this play, but it didn’t matter. Nabers beat Emerson from behind on a jump ball down the sideline and grabbed a potential interception for a 28-yard gain and a first down inside the 15-yard line.
Five plays later, Nabers made another spectacular catch, this time for a touchdown. As with his previous catch, Emerson was the loser of the game.
Nabers again faced single coverage from Emerson on first and last down at the 3-yard line. Jones knew where to look. Nabers ran an out route and Jones targeted him in the back left corner of the end zone. Nabers created distance from Emerson and leapt up to catch a high throw with his fingertips. He spun in the air and tapped both toes in the end zone before his body fell out of bounds.
The score gave New York a 14-7 lead.
Just before halftime, Nabers found the end zone again. This time, Nabers ran a lateral route from the left to a weak spot in the Browns’ zone. Jones found him in the middle of the end zone and scored a touchdown that extended New York’s lead to 21-7.
With that hit, Nabers became the youngest wide receiver in NFL history to catch two touchdowns in a single game at 21 years, 56 days old. He finished the game with 78 yards on eight catches and 12 targeted passes.
Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson completed 21 of 37 passes for 196 yards and scored two touchdowns. His counterpart Daniel Jones completed 24 of 34 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns.
Nabers came into the league with less fanfare than fellow rookie Marvin Harrison Jr., who the Arizona Cardinals selected two picks ahead of him with the No. 4 overall pick in April’s draft. But he is a sensational talent who is already taking the league by storm just three games into his NFL career.
