4 NY Giants who completely exceeded expectations in the regular season
1. Defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence
Dexter Lawrence has always been a good player for the Giants, and the pairing of him and Leonard Williams has been one of the team’s strengths for a while now. But in years past, he was always the second best player in that duo, with Williams being the all around more imposing defender. This all changed this season, with Lawrence developing into a ferocious pass-rusher. He’s one of the best interior defensive lineman in the game.
The 2019 first-round pick has the highest Pro Football Focus grade out of all interior defenders, with a grade of 92. Lawrence has been one of the best players in the NFL this season and is on pace to being named an All-Pro for the first time in his career.
Lawrence’s fifth year option kicks in next season, but it is in the teams best interest to offer a contract extension this offseason, keeping the 25 year old in East Rutherford for the long haul. The Giants are set to have the third-most cap space this offseason without considering cuts and restructures, so there is cap room to make a deal work.
Lawrence has been the Giants best player by some margin this season and has completely exceeded the expectations, going from being a good run-stop defender into an All-Pro nightmare for any offensive lineman he has come up against.
