Giants star WR Malik Nabers clears concussion protocol

New York Giants star rookie receiver Malik Nabers cleared concussion protocol after fully participating in Thursday's practice, the team announced.

Nabers was evaluated by an independent neurologist after practice and deemed healthy.

However, Nabers experienced groin tightness during practice and that ailment was added to his listing on the injury report.

Nabers has missed the past two games after sustaining the concussion in the final minutes of a Thursday night loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 26.

Nabers was the No. 6 overall pick by the Giants out of LSU. He has 35 catches for 386 yards and three scores in four games. He has twice caught 10 or more passes and exceeded 100 yards in the same game.

Before Nabers was cleared, New York coach Brian Daboll was optimistic the 21-year-old was close to exiting the protocol.

"Malik has made progress," Daboll said. "Good progress where he's able to come out here today and practice. He'll have a red jersey on, but he passed some of the steps that he needed to do. He's better, which is a good thing. So, we'll see.

"I'm optimistic, but I'm not going to push anything. That type of injury you want to be smart with. But he is doing much better."

Nabers was a limited participant on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, outside linebacker Brian Burns (groin), defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence (hip), cornerback Adoree' Jackson (neck) and punter Jamie Gillan (left hamstring) sat out Thursday's practice.