Pro Football Rumors
As expected, the dawn of the John Harbaugh era brought extensive change in New York. The Giants acquired a handful of former Ravens and are set to feature a noticeably different depth chart thanks to additions and Brian Daboll-era subtractions. Question marks loom about skill-position players’ injury recoveries and first-round picks’ positional outlooks.
Even as the Giants rearranged their power structure to lure Harbaugh, they handed GM Joe Schoen an extension. As the Harbaugh-Schoen partnership prepared for the draft, the most notable offseason decision came about. As a result, a major asset came the Giants’ way — and a glaring need opened up.
Runaway victors in the 2019 Odell Beckham Jr. trade thanks to then-GM Dave Gettleman drafting Lawrence 17th overall, the Giants reaped benefits of having one of the NFL’s best defensive linemen anchoring its pass rush. Lawrence’s presence certainly boosted the rush prospects of Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, Azeez Ojulari and Markus Golden during his tenure. After Lawrence’s stats nosedived following a return from elbow surgery, he still angled for a 2026 raise. The Giants were reluctant to provide it, keying a seminal standoff.
The eighth-year veteran requested a trade in early April, and while an initial report indicated the Giants were unlikely to grant the request, a big Bengals offer moved the team to reconsider. Lawrence, 28, and the Giants conducted contract talks during the period following his trade request; however, it does not appear the sides made notable progress.
An impasse led to Cincinnati entering the fray. Seeing a declining defense sink a Joe Burrow-centered roster, the Bengals were the only team to offer a first-round pick for the All-Pro nose tackle. Harbaugh had called Lawrence a “super, super important” player at the Combine, but after his sack total plummeted from nine (in a 12-game 2024 season) to 0.5 (in 17 2025 games), the Giants accepted the Bengals’ offer.
With the Bengals holding the No. 10 pick, that being the only first-round offer certainly became a critical part of the Giants’ decision. A cost-controlled top-10 asset — albeit in a draft the perpetually conservative Bengals deemed top-heavy enough to dangle their pick for a veteran — proved too much to pass up for a team that saw Schoen’s influence limited after the Harbaugh hire.
Two years remained on Lawrence’s four-year, $90MM extension; the guarantees on the pact had been paid out. The Bengals hammered out a one-year, $28MM extension with Lawrence. After Jordan Davis‘ Eagles extension in early March, Lawrence stood as the league’s 12th-highest-paid D-tackle. He now sits third, though the Bengals only authorized a $10MM guarantee at signing. They could move on rather easily in 2027 should Lawrence’s 2025 season prove more indicative of his future.
Lawrence earned second-team All-Pro honors in 2022 and ’23, and he was on his way to a first-team nod before suffering a dislocated elbow 12 games into the ’24 season. The Bengals will pair him...
