'Hard Knocks': Giants WR coach Mike Groh wanted Malik Nabers over Marvin Harrison

Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO through July 30 and is available to stream on Max.

As training camp is dawning for the New York Giants in the real world, the time machine that is Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants transported Big Blue back to the pre-draft process on Tuesday night.

As myriad top-class quarterbacks and wide receivers are now prepping for their rookie seasons, the penultimate episode of Hard Knocks‘ debut offseason installment sees QBs Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye and WRs Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze making their rounds at Giants facilities.

By episode’s end, it’s clear the Giants had their hopes set on the wideout from LSU, Nabers. Perhaps most eye-opening was wide receivers coach Mike Groh’s confidence in the prospect, as he viewed Nabers as the top option at his position.

“So, you’re on the clock right now, you gotta make a decision, one of those three?” president and CEO John Mara asked Groh of selecting Harrison, Nabers or Odunze.

Without hesitation, Groh replied: “I take Nabers.”

All three top-flight receivers visited the Giants at the same time and Groh had them all in a classroom together. He was clearly a huge fan — unsurprisingly.

“Can we draft all three of you guys?” Groh wished aloud.

At this point, the Giants were still weighing all their options, which included perhaps trading up from No. 6 overall to grab Daniels or Maye. Daboll was clearly enamored by Daniels, yet he wanted to know the LSU QB wanted to be in Gotham just as much as Gotham wanted him.

“Let’s cut to the chase, do you want to be here?” Daboll asked Daniels.

Daniels said he did. And Daboll made it known shortly thereafter in a meeting with general manger Joe Schoen and others that he would trade up for the talented dual threat. The jury on Maye didn’t seem to be as emphatic, though, at least not from what was shown on the episode.

What followed was a deep dive by Daboll, Schoen and Co. looking into the success of first-round quarterbacks’ success over the past decade.

When the hit-or-miss facts are brought to the forefront, Daboll was asked for his take.

“Take the (C.J.) Stroud,” he smiled.

If the Giants were to grab a QB, they knew they’d have to trade up for one. It’s a situation that Mara admitted had him apprehensive, though it was a familiar feeling.

“I’m just nervous about giving away too much for a QB,” Mara said. “Very similar to 20 years ago.”

Twenty years prior saw the Giants and Chargers exchange their already drafted quarterbacks Philip Rivers and Eli Manning, respectively, in addition to Big Blue parting with a third-round pick in that draft and a first- and third-round pick the following year.

Mara revealed that among the attributes that drew the team to Manning were his ability to excel at Ole Miss despite limited surrounding weapons and shining against SEC competition. Though Rivers and Manning each panned out, Manning quarterbacked the Giants to a pair of Super Bowl triumphs in his tenure.

Thus, the juice was very much worth the squeeze in history’s hindsight.

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As the time machine drifted back to more recent history, Schoen and Mara discussed another potential trade. However, a Schoen call to the New England Patriots essentially nixed that option as it was clear the Pats were looking to stay put at No. 3 unless they were bowled over by an offer.

With any aspirations of quarterbacks no longer dancing through their heads, it became clear the Giants wanted Nabers or Harrison — and that Schoen knows how to predict the top of a draft.

Rightly predicting each of the top five picks, Schoen rooted aloud, “Come on, Malik Nabers! Be there. Please.”

Spoiler alert: The Giants got their guy. But the episode ended with the suited front office staff at the draft, ready for the franchise-altering festivities to kick off. Thus, one episode remains in the eye-opening look behind the scenes with the season finale of Draft Day on the horizon right as the 2024 class will be smack dab in the middle of camp practices.