New Star Defensive Tackle Contract Adds Even More Value to Dexter Lawrence Contract Amidst 2026 Training Camp

Dexter Lawrence just keeps becoming a bigger and bigger bargain for the Bengals.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Monday that the Cowboys inked Quinnen Williams to a new three-year extension to end his contract demands.

"Sources: The Cowboys and star DL Quinnen Williams have agreed to terms on a three-year, $105.9M extension to make him one of the highest-paid DLs. The deal, done by Nicole Lynn of Klutch Sports, is the largest third-contract ever for a DL and secures Williams’ future in Dallas."

It just makes the deal Cincinnati gave to Lawrence even more of a value after Jalen Carter also resigned this offseason to reset the market.

According to Spotrac, Lawrence is on an average yearly salary of $28 million with Cincinnati and was the fourth-highest-paid interior defensive lineman entering the day, but now he is No. 5 behind Carter ($38 million), Quinnen Williams ($35.3 million average on his new deal), Jeffery Simmons ($35.27 million), and Chris Jones ($31.75 million).

Lawrence is slated to take up just 4.8% of the 2026 salary cap (maxes at 8.7% in 2028, 7.4% next year). Cincinnati is getting a bigger steal by the day for a player wrecking training camp so far.

Defensive coordinator Al Golden discussed his early impact last week.

"Dex is everything you would imagine that he is," Golden declared. "He came back in great shape, and I think that's a testament to him and his work ethic and his energy, renewed energy and his focus. So he's powerful. We're going to continue to work to get him to beat blocks. His middle push is significant, so he's doing a great job of buying in and being a leader for us.

"Again, upstairs did a tremendous job, giving us depth and versatility. And I think I said back to the first day or before the first day, we're trying to find out what we do best too, and our guys are putting on film every day what we do best, and we're making little adaptations daily to make sure that we are using them the way they should be."

The roster build in 2026 just keeps looking better and better from the Bengals front office.

Something to keep in mind with Dexter Lawrence who is from the same 2019 draft class as Quinnen Williams.

Lawrence is under contract through the 2028 season after agreeing to a 1-yr extension with CIN as part of the trade from the NYG in April.

Lawrence's $28M extension looks… https://t.co/skbjK8MSPy
— Andre Perrotta (@andreperrotta13) August 10, 2026

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