Despite reports that Dexter Lawrence wants to be traded, the New York Giants are “doing everything we can” to keep the star defensive tackle, according to exclusive reporting from Paul Schwart of the New York Post.
“We are working together to get the best outcome for the Giants team,’’ head coach John Harbaugh told The Post. “We also respect Dexter fully as a person and player and want him to be happy. We are doing everything we can, as best we can, as responsibly as we can.’’
There have been reports
that talks between the two sides on a new or revised contract were at an impasse and had broken off completely. Schwartz, though, said Joel Segal, Lawrence’s agent, and the team are “still talking.”
Schwartz wrote:
The team is willing to give him a significant financial upgrade. However, Lawrence is dug in on what he wants, and the two sides might not be able to get the negotiations over the finish line.
Schwartz wrote that Lawrence wants “much more” than the $19.5 million he is scheduled to make in each of the final two years of his contract.
Here are other points made by Schwartz, with some of my thoughts following each:
This is strictly about money. Lawrence, who turns 29 in November, could see this as his last opportunity to cash in with a lucrative new deal. Jordan Davis of the Eagles and Milton Williams of the Patriots both average $26 million per year. Lawrence cannot accept that he is far below those two players. The Giants are willing to add guaranteed money into an extension, but Lawrence’s asking price might turn out to be exorbitant. The player, supported by his family, is drawing a line in the sand.
Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs is the highest-paid defensive tackle in football. The average annual value of his deal is $31.75 million. Jones’ base salary for 2026 is $19 million, with a $16 million roster bonus guaranteeing he will make $35 million in 2026. Jordan Davis of the Philadelphia Eagles and Milton Williams of the New England Patriots have contract with average annual values of $26 million.
That would seem to leave room for a deal to be made in the average annual value range of $27-30 million. Whether that is what Lawrence wants, or what the Giants are willing to offer, is unknown.
If negotiations do not result in an agreement, the Giants would be willing to trade Lawrence, and their asking price would start at a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Schwartz said the Giants would want either a top-10 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft plus one more pick, or a later first-round pick and multiple additional assets.
Considering that the reporting has indicated that teams have not been calling GM Joe Schoen to make offers, that might not be a realistic ask.
That would also indicate that while the draft might not be a hard deadline, it could indeed be a tipping point.
It stands to reason the Giants do not want to set a precedent, realizing that ceding to the demands of a player with two years remaining on his existing contract could open the floodgates for similar requests down the line. “Well, you did it for Dex’’ would be the players’ rationale. The Giants also know they must protect themselves from investing too much in a player who might be on the downside, was overweight in 2025 and coming off a subpar season. The Giants cannot look as if they capitulated to a player already under contract and hurt their salary cap space down the road.
Lawrence is a popular, respected player in the locker room. John Harbaugh is not handling the negotiating, but the Giants successfully navigating this is important for the new coach.
It is not exactly a secret that Lawrence and general manager Joe Schoen do not see eye-to-eye in this situation. Harbaugh is as strong a head coach as there is in the league, and it would come as no surprise if he kept the lines of communication open with Joel Segal, Lawrence’s agent. Harbaugh can be a persuasive salesman, but he has no real relationship with Lawrence. Getting Harbaugh in a room with Lawrence could be beneficial for the Giants, but agents often do not permit that to happen, and that likely is the case here.
This is an idea I have head a few times recently. It probably would be helpful. Harbaugh indicated at the beginning of the voluntary offseason program, though, that Segal was indeed standing in the way of such a conversation. We will have to see if that stance softens.
As for the relationship between Schoen and Lawrence, I don’t believe it is about the contract. The deal Lawrence got from Schoen is 2024 was a solid one that made him the third-highest defensive tackle in the league at the time.
Lawrence was hurt when Schoen traded his best friend on the team, Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks. I’m not sure Lawrence has ever gotten over that, especially after also watching players like Saquon Barkley, Xavier McKinney, and Julian Love leave.
Neither side can walk away from this feeling embarrassed with the outcome. The Giants cannot write a blank check, and they cannot settle for a trade that brings back a meager return, knowing that would not sit well with the fan base. Lawrence’s camp cannot settle for a deal that is not market value, even though Lawrence is not on the open market. It is likely Lawrence is not acknowledging that he is not a free agent and thus cannot expect the Giants to overpay to keep him.
The fact that Lawrence has chosen this fight and is reportedly so deeply dug in despite not having the free agency card until 2028 makes this even more difficult. Negotiations that give both sides something they want require compromise. Will Lawrence come off his “line in the sand?” How far are the Giants willing to go?
If no deal or trade happens, things could get sticky. There are no indications that Lawrence, who was not a happy camper last season, would chalk this up to “just business” and come in motivated to have a great year. The sight of Lawrence at the facility but not participating in practices is not a scenario anyone wants. Former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin often said, “I want volunteers, not hostages.’’ That could apply here.
The Giants will be hauling a lot of equipment to West Virginia this summer. They don’t need 350 pounds of unhappy baggage causing a distraction during Harbaugh’s first training camp. Cross your figers that this is resolved by then. It sounds like it might not be.
