Could Falcons Pursue a Trade for DL Dexter Lawrence?

The Atlanta Falcons need a defensive tackle, and one of the NFL’s best might be available for them to pursue. New York Giants defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence has reportedly requested a trade, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, and will not be participating in offseason workouts.

The Giants have been working on extending their All-Pro defensive tackle in each of the last two offseasons, but have not made any meaningful progress. The Falcons might be able to take advantage of this opportunity.

Giants NFL Nation reporter for ESPN, Jordan Raanan, reported that the “general consensus appears to be that IF the Giants were willing to trade Dexter Lawrence the return would be in the range of late first-round pick to second-rounder.”

Atlanta does not have a lot of draft capital to spare this season, rendering the chance of acquiring the star defender exceedingly unlikely. They carry just five draft picks, and Ian Cunningham has been on the record that he is not a fan of minimizing the volume of his selections.

Lawrence is coming off a down season, where he registered 0.5 sacks and 31 tackles over 17 games. That performance ended his streak of three straight Pro Bowls. However, the defender remains an elite force that teams would clamor for if he did become available. Even in a down year, he was an elite interior pass rusher, finishing with 26 quarterback pressures.

Should the Giants even consider a trade, they would look to maximize their return. The Falcons would not have the luxury of getting into a bidding war.

As a former first-round pick in 2019, Lawrence has developed into one of the NFL’s most impactful interior defenders. Despite an overall lackluster performance by the Giants’ run defense, the fault does not lie with their elite defensive tackle. He has earned three Pro Bowl and two All-Pro nods over the last seven seasons.

At 28, Lawrence is squarely in his prime and will factor in as a key contributor over the next several seasons.

The Giants recognized this and signed him to a four-year extension in 2023 that will carry cap hits of $27 and $26.5 million over the next two years. He is due $20 million next season, which is tenth among defensive tackles.

Should the Falcons make this move, they would need to do some additional cap management to afford Lawrence. They carry just $16.3 million in cap space.

Overall, adding a player like Lawrence would be a guaranteed upgrade to the Falcons’ interior. Unfortunately, the price and work that would need to be done on the back end will likely push him outside of their range at this point, rendering a deal exceedingly unlikely.

Sign up for our free Atlanta Falcons newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news!