Dexter Lawrence trade market opens as Giants hit contract wall originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Joe Schoen opened his pre-draft press conference on Tuesday by calling talks with Dexter Lawrence “productive.” Within hours, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the two sides had reached an impasse, with the New York Giants actively engaging other teams on a potential trade.
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On paper, both things can be true at once. They don’t add up to anything encouraging.
Giants open to moves after Lawrence misses offseason work
Lawrence is 28, hasn’t shown up for the Giants’ offseason program since requesting a trade. His $20 million salary has no guaranteed money left, and New York won’t budge.
Three Pro Bowls and two All-Pro nods, yet he ranks 12th among interior linemen at $21.8 million per year. For what he’s done here, that’s not the number he wants.
But Lawrence’s 2025 season wasn’t exactly his best. He finished with 31 tackles and half a sack across 17 games. Not his strongest argument for a top-10 payday.
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He finished with 31 tackles and half a sack across 17 games. Not his strongest argument.
The Giants aren’t paying top dollar for a player coming off that kind of year, regardless of career resume. That is what probably gave them room to dig in.
Schoen confirmed Tuesday he’s “always going to pick up the phone” when teams call. Harbaugh said last week, “everybody’s tradeable.” That’s about as direct as a head coach gets.
Trading Lawrence before the draft gives New York compensation it can use this spring. Rapoport said the situation should be resolved before draft week. The window closes fast.
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