Dexter Lawrence remains under contract with the Giants, but that may not be the case for much longer. The Pro Bowl defensive tackle has requested a trade, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.
Lawrence will not attend New York’s offseason program, per Schefter. Since the Giants are among the teams which made a head coaching change this winter, their program will begin Tuesday. Lawrence will remain absent as an indication of his displeasure over the status of extension talks. Depending on how long it lasts, this action will cost him his $500K workout bonus, Dan Duggan of The Athletic notes.
[RELATED: Reasons Behind Lawrence’s Request Emerge]
Schefter adds contract negotiations have not yielded progress, and colleague Jordan Raanan confirms Lawrence “has not been happy for quite some time.” As things stand, two years remain on the 28-year-old’s contract. Lawrence is owed $20MM in 2026 and another $22MM the following season. The guaranteed money on his pact has run out, however, creating the need for a fresh round of extension talks.
GM Joe Schoen said in February negotiations would commence in Lawrence’s case. He also stated no serious consideration would be given to a trade, a reasonable stance given the Clemson product’s importance to New York’s defensive front. Lawrence was the subject of calls leading up to the 2025 trade deadline, but no deal was ever imminent. It will be interesting to see if things play out differently with the draft approaching.
Lawrence stood out with 7.5 sacks in 2022, and he set a new career high two seasons later with nine. In between those two years, a $22.5MM-per-year extension was worked out. The 2023 offseason saw several big-ticket defensive tackle contracts agreed to, and Lawrence fell in line with several other top producers at the time. Conversations on a new multiyear agreement did not produce an agreement last offseason, so a temporary fix was worked out. Incentives were added to Lawrence’s deal, but a lingering elbow injury resulted in a down year with respect to his production (0.5 sacks, 12 QB pressures).
Given that drop-off in statistical output, the Giants may be hard-pressed to arrive at a new figure which satisfies Lawrence’s asking price. The former first-rounder is tied for 11th in the NFL in terms of average annual value for defensive tackle contracts, and the position’s market has jumped since his last deal was signed. Given today’s update, at least, there is plenty of work to be done if a contract agreement is to be reached at any point this offseason. Failing any traction on that front, interest from outside suitors will no doubt pick up during the lead-in to the draft.
A second-team All-Pro in 2022 and ’23, Lawrence has been a full-time presence on defense since arriving in 2019. The former first-rounder enjoyed a long spell of impactful play against the pass, though his production from this past year could limit the willingness of at least some outside teams to part with draft capital and commit to an extension. On the other hand, New York’s depth along the defensive line aside from Lawrence is seen as a weakness. Moving on before or after the draft would create even more of a need on the interior as the Giants aim to take a needed step forward on defense in 2026.
The Giants are near the bottom of the NFL in terms of spending power at the moment. Reducing Lawrence’s 2026 cap hit ($26.96MM) would help in that regard, but an extension is clearly not imminent. Any trade processed before June 1 would generate roughly even figures in terms of cap savings and dead money charges. A swap after that date, by contrast, would give New York $20MM in savings while resulting in $6.96MM in dead money.
Panthers come to the panthers!!!
It’ll be interesting to see where he goes. It’s not a great draft class for defensive tackles, and there are extremely few people who can do what Lawrence does at his best, even if he wasn’t at his best last year.
Should have traded him at deadline last year when he had more value.
Had that happened, Dex wouldn’t have been called out by Giants legend Carl Banks for doggin’ it.
Very interesting. He was solid last year, but way off his All-Pro pace from a couple of years ago. This is probably the type of “request” that can be smoothed over by signing him to a new deal, but is it worth it? A lot of his “unhappiness” stemmed from Daboll and especially Shane Bowen (a few very telling post-game interviews last season, including right after Bowen was fired), and both are gone. So you’d think money would solve the problem here. But I’m not sure that’s a good use of cap money. The Giants had one of the worst rushing defenses in NFL history last year and Dex was a big part of that.
Is Darius Alexander ready to shoulder a bigger load at DT? He showed flashes of being very good as a rookie last season. Would they replace Dex via the draft? Can they afford to lose a solid member from an already bad defense? Will be interesting to see how Harbaugh handles this.
Nearing age 29, this might be a good time to trade DL II. He’ll never be worth more than he is now and a contender could easily feel it’s worth giving up a good pick or two if Lawrence will put them over the top.
Yes, but the problem is that this creates another big hole in the DLine when they were already giving up 5+ yds per carry last year…..
If they land two draft picks this year for Lawrence, Harbaugh can choose his replacement with one of them.
Starting a rookie in the middle of a defense that gave up 5+ yds per carry last year would potentially be a disaster in addition to altering the Giants planned drafting this year….
You’re not getting 2 picks for him. They’re going to guarantee one year and partially guarantee the next. This type of thing happens every year. Smart teams take care of it before it sours the locker room.
I could see interest from Seattle but they only have 4 picks this year. What a tandem he would make with Leonard Williams though…
Flores 👀
Patriots got the money
He’ll leave the Giants and immediately turn things around like Barkley and Jones did…lol.
Surprised….but another spoiled athlete who’s unhappy with their contract they signed simply because the market has moved the price of other DL’s upwards…he wanted a long term contract but is now unhappy because he thinks he’s underpaid….and given his performance the last 2 seasons, he shouldn’t expect the Giants to bend over backwards…..
Imagine if he goes to the eagles like saquon
Do you honestly think the NY Giants would trade their best defensive player to the Philadelphia Eagles? The Eagles would have to give them every available first rounder and more.
Having learned that Schoen shouldn’t be trusted to negotiate any trade given the Saquan debacle, it would make total sense that the Giants stipulate with any team they deal with, that under no circumstances can that team make the trade and then turn around and deal him to the Eagles….sounds cumbersome but in the back room dealings of the NFL totally plausible……the Eagles like to deal in the gray and would probably try and be the third team involved in a deal to secure Lawrence…..
Yes. Didn’t the Cowboys (Jerry) do something like this before they dealt Parsons!
No. I will not.
Harbaugh is the de facto GM and he’ll have the final word
Yeah I don’t see anything happening without Harbaugh’s approval.
Another reason to see that Schoen is a horrible GM and must go. His undervaluing of many players is a reason the Giants are bottom dwellers. Being caught on Hard Knocks saying no one would give Saquon what he wants, then watching him walk out the door to the rival Eagles is nothing short of incompetence. Saying McKinney as a safety isn’t worth what he’s asking, only to see him also get it from the Packers, then turning around and paying a safety the same amount of money only a year later. Signing Jones to a top tier contract coming off one decent year out of 5, trading Leonard Williams, not even offering Julian Love a contract when you are short on corners. Paying a ridiculous amount to Slayton, signing Gano and Gilliam to absurd contracts, need I go on? This man needs to be fired for his mismanagement of the cap. He’s had 4 years and hasn’t helped it at all, just one bad contract decision after another. Hopefully the hiring of Dawn Aponte will help straighten things out and get a contract done with Dexter.
God knows I can’t watch another 3-4 win season without going crazy!
yes but he has good hair
Play your deal.
Too bad, I like Lawrence. Well, clear some cap and collect some picks. Or tell him to shove it.
An extension would have to come with 2-3 void years to kick out the signing bonus. The Giants already have a $3.6M cap issue with being able to sign their draft class. He is at the top of their cap hit list as of now.
The Giants would need to move his salary this year ($18M) into mostly a bonus and 1 real year (2028) and spread the rest of the bonus into 2029 and 2030 void years. Their cap position is much better in 2027.
This is a tough one with the points raised.
Having the draft capital would be great, so would the cap relief. Being able to stop the run would be even better.
Harbaugh should be coach of the year if he goes 9-8 or better.
Once a player becomes this disgruntled I think they should trade him, if they get a decent offer. Giants need all the draft picks they can get at this point. And I agree with you that if John Harbaugh gets them to a winning record this year, with the current roster, he should absolutely be named coach of the year!
I agree but they haven’t really been able to stop the run with him, so I’m unfortunately indifferent to his exit.
I’ve considered disgruntled players to be like ex wives or girlfriends once they raise the ‘want out’ position it’s best to just open the door and move on.
Players want more this time, then they’ll want more again and eventually it impacts their attitude and performance. Like some SF or Cincy players, can be a repetitive drama that eats at a locker room