Dexter Lawrence, Giants at 'Impasse' in High-Stakes Contract Talks

Despite GM Joe Schoen’s public optimism, reports of a total deadlock and active trade calls have made Lawrence's future with the Giants uncertain.

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

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen told reporters on late Tuesday afternoon that talks with unhappy defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence were “productive.”

While perhaps that might have been Schoen’s opinion at the time he made his opening statement ahead of fielding questions about the upcoming draft, things may have taken a turn for the worse.

The NFL Network has reported that Lawrence and the Giants are at an impasse over the three-time Pro Bowler’s contract, a point punctuated by the fact that Lawrence has yet to show up at the team’s facility for its offseason program.

The #Giants and star DL Dexter Lawrence, who have been talking about a new big-money extension, have reached an impasse, sources say.

The Giants have engaged with teams on a potential trade and that will continue. It should come to a head before the Draft. pic.twitter.com/UhNXM4WGwF

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 15, 2026

A follow-up report further added that the Giants have engaged with teams about a potential trade for the unhappy defensive player.

The root of Lawrence’s unhappiness is–what else?-money. At the time he signed a four-year $90 million contract extension, his $22.5 million APY made him the third-highest paid interior defender in the league.

But since then, the market has passed Lawrence by, and he currently stands as having the 12th highest APY while fellow defensive linemen such as Philadelphia’s Jordan Davis, who, unlike Lawrence, has no Pro Bowl berths or All-Pro nods to his name, now sit tied for the second highest APY ($26 million) with Milton Williams of the Patriots.

Another factor that's likely making Lawrence unhappy is that he’s out of guaranteed money, though, with regard to this, the odds of him being cut from the roster so he wouldn’t collect his $18.5 million base salary this year are virtually non-existent.

Lawrence struggled last season through an elbow injury that limited his ability to shed solo blocks, let alone double-team blocks.

He finished with a career-worst 0.5 sacks and posted his lowest career total in tackles for loss (4) since he had three as a rookie, while also seeing his tackle totals drop to their lowest despite his not missing a game last season.  

The Giants hold the cards

The Giants, it would seem, have the leverage with Lawrence, who is under contract for two more seasons.

Last year, they attempted to appease Lawrence’s growing unhappiness with his contract by amending his contract with up to $3 million in incentives, of which he only reached a third of that total, given his compromised elbow.

While Schoen expressed confidence in a deal getting smoothed out, he also said that he’d “always pick up the phone” if someone were to call about a trade for Lawrence, the second of the Giants’ three first-round picks in 2019.

Given that the interior defensive line class isn’t exactly overflowing with blue-chip talent, the Giants could find themselves in a great position to add extra assets to not only this year’s draft but next year’s, where the class’s talent level is shaping up to be far superior to its 2026 counterpart.

Again, though, there is a degree of confidence on the Giants' part that they’ll be able to work something out with Lawrence. If not, the first day of the draft next week promises to be an interesting one as far as teams that might be looking to acquire a talent like Lawrence, despite his “down” season last year.

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