Inside the Numbers: Rookies Malik Nabers, Tyrone Tracy Jr. lead the way

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Malik Nabers and Tyrone Tracy have established themselves as one of the most prolific rookie tandems in Giants history.

Nabers, the wide receiver selected sixth in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, leads the Giants with 80 catches, 819 yards and three touchdown receptions. Tracy is first on the team with 141 rushing attempts, 664 yards and five scores, including the Giants’ only touchdown in a 14-11 loss Sunday to the New Orleans Saints.

The Giants are the first NFL team to have rookies lead in all those statistical categories since…the Giants, in 2014, when the players were Odell Beckham, Jr. and Andre Williams.

Ten years ago, Beckham – like Nabers, a first-round draft choice from LSU – topped the Giants with 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns, all franchise rookie records. And he posted those numbers despite missing the first four games with a hamstring injury.

That season, Andre Williams, a fourth-round draft choice from Boston College, had team-leading totals of 217 carries, 721 yards and seven rushing touchdowns.

Before 2014, the last season in which rookies led the Giants in rushing and receiving yards in a full season was in 1950, when Eddie Price ran for 703 yards and Bob McChesney had 380 receiving yards.

*The 2024 Giants are the first team to have a rookie lead them in rushing yards and receiving yards since the 2022 Jets (Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson) and 2022 Atlanta Falcons (Tyler Allgeier and Drake London).

*Including his 216 receiving yards, Tracy leads the team and is fourth among NFL rookies with 880 scrimmage yards. Nabers, who has two rushing yards, is fifth among league newcomers with 821 scrimmage yards. The Giants are the only NFL team with rookies leading in rushing and receiving touchdowns and the only team with rookies first and second in yards from scrimmage.

NFL Rookies Scrimmage Yards

• Bucky Irving (Tampa Bay) 1,035
• Brock Bowers (Las Vegas) 947
• Brian Thomas (Jacksonville) 881
• Tyrone Tracy (Giants) 880
• Malik Nabers (Giants) 821

*Tracy has played all 13 games and averages 67.7 yards from scrimmage. Nabers is averaging 74.6 yards in 11 games. They are the first rookie tandem in Giants history in which each player averages at least 65 scrimmage yards in 10+ games. The last NFL team with two rookies averaging at least 65 yards in 10 or more games was the 2006 New Orleans Saints, who featured wide receiver Marques Colston (74.1-yard average in 14 games) and running back Reggie Bush (81.7-yard average in 16 games).

*This is the first season since 2014 the Giants have two rookies with more than 800 scrimmage yards. Tracy and Nabers have combined for 1,701 yards. The franchise combined rookie record is 2,191 in 2014 by Beckham (1,340) and Williams (851).

*Nabers’ 80 receptions are the highest total in NFL history by a player in his first 11 career games. It is also the third-highest total in a player’s first 12 games, the number Nabers will reach Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens in MetLife Stadium.

Most Receptions in a Player’s First 12 Career Games

• Odell Beckham, Jr. 91
• Brock Bowers 84
• Malik Nabers 80 (through 11 games)
• Puka Nacua 77
• Jaylen Waddle 77

*Nabers’ 80 catches place him third on the Giants’ rookie list. Beckham (2014) and Saquon Barkley (2018) share the record with 91 receptions.

Most Receptions/Giants Rookie

• Odell Beckham Jr. (2014) 91
• Saquon Barkley (2018) 91
• Malik Nabers (2024) 80

*This is the ninth season in Giants’ history in which a player has at least 80 receptions. Beckham did it a team-record three times, Victor Cruz twice, and Steve Smith (franchise record 107 in 2009), Barkley, Amani Toomer and Nabers once each.

*Wan’Dale Robinson is second behind Nabers with 67 catches. The Giants are the only team this season with two players with 67+ receptions.

*Nabers’ 79 receiving yards against the Saints increased his season total to 819. That broke a tie with teammate Darius Slayton, vaulted him over Hakeem Nicks (790 in 2009) and Bobby Johnson (795 in 1984) and into third place on the Giants’ rookie list. Beckham is first with 1,305 yards and tight end Jeremy Shockey is second with 894 in 2002.

In 2023, the Giants were one of four teams that did not have an 800-yard receiver. Slayton gained a team high 770 yards.