Bears Should Temper Expectations for Dexter Lawrence Trade Based on Latest Buzz

While it would be a dream scenario, the Chicago Bears and their fans need to temper expectations for a Dexter Lawrence trade.

New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

In a perfect world, the Chicago Bears pull off a blockbuster trade with the New York Giants for star defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence, who has reportedly requested a trade.

Of course, Lawrence's trade request was reported on Monday and it stems from his desire for a new deal with more money, including more guaranteed money, of which he has none left right now.

It's not hard to see why Bears fans are all worked up about this news. As we've stated tirelessly over the course of the offseason, Chicago needs a big boost to its run defense on the interior of the defensive line, which Lawrence can provide. It also wouldn't hurt to add more interior pressure, something Lawrence excels at, also.

Sadly, we don't live in a perfect world and it stands to reason that the Giants superstar is much more likely to stand pat in New York than get traded, even with his now-public demand setting the league on fire.

As the Bears and their fans (Bears On SI included) dream about a potential blockbuster deal with the Giants, expectations need to be tempered based on all of the information we have on the situation right now.

A move the Giants can't afford

New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

When it comes to the Giants beat, it's unanimous that New York simply cannot afford to trade Lawrence.

ESPN's Jordan Raanan notes that the Giants are already weak on the defensive line and trading Lawrence would leave a massive chasm in the middle of an already suspect group. Safe to say, Giants head coach John Harbaugh is well aware of this fact.

"He's super, super important. He's a cornerstone football player -- not really a cornerstone, more like the middle stone," Harbaugh said of Lawrence in March. "He's right in the middle. He's a very big stone, and he's a very active, athletic one."

That means Lawrence has leverage in this situation. He is not someone the Giants can easily replace and that might force the Giants' hand, even if they don't necessarily want to give Lawrence more money.

Giants would be selling low

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Another issue is the Giants would be trading Lawrence at a discount. Sure, everyone knows Lawrence is still an elite player, but he's coming off a disappointing season where there were concerns over his work ethic and the shape he was in and that's something teams are going to look to take advantage of.

At his peak, the Giants might have been able to get a pair of first-round picks, or at least a first-rounder and then some. Raanan is hearing from people around the league that Lawrence's value is somewhere between a late first-rounder and a second-rounder.

A ton of competition for Lawrence

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles. | David Banks-Imagn Images

When a superstar defender like Lawrence becomes available, there are always a ton of teams that will come calling and that leads to a bidding war that could result in New York getting more than the estimates floating around out there.

The Bears have the draft capital to make a trade happen, and they can make the money work. We will say the fact that Bears have picks late in rounds (and are slated to have a similar situation in 2027) could hurt them against teams with earlier picks.

The most important thing here is that Chicago's odds of actually landing Lawrence will be extremely low because of how many teams will be involved.

Plenty of time

New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Then, there's the fact that the Giants still have a ton of time to get something done. We're only in April right now, which gives the Giants over three months before Lawrence's holdout really becomes an issue in training camp.

A lot can change between now and then and we'd suspect it'll be enough time for the Giants to repair things with Lawrence and keep him in New York.

If not, the Bears better get on the phone and throw everything they can at the Giants to land a player who would be a massive upgrade for them.