When the New York Giants traded Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks during the 2023 trade deadline, the original consensus was that Joe Schoen committed highway robbery. At the time, coming away with a second-round pick and more was considered a masterclass from the front office.
A 2024 second-rounder and a 2025 fifth-rounder for a 29-year-old defensive tackle entering a contract year felt like a recipe for success. And while you never would've thunk it two years ago, the Giants found a way to lose this trade because they failed to anticipate what would really happen.
The 32-year-old won a Super Bowl and enjoyed a career renaissance after turning 30, looking far better than he ever did in New York. He became one of the missing pieces for Mike Macdonald's defense that later became one of the NFL's best, and Seattle deserves credit for such a gamble.
Leonard Williams has become the NFL's best DT since leaving the Giants
The Seahawks turned a past-his-prime defender into a key contributor, but more importantly, they taught the Giants a lesson. As ESPN's Jeremy Fowler surveyed NFL scouts, executives, and coaches about the 10 best defensive tackles in the NFL, they found that Williams captured the top spot.
"He was the most important player on that Super Bowl team," an NFL coordinator said. "He's the total package."
This is just proof of how much the perception of this trade has changed, and rightfully so. It initially skewed heavily in favor of the G-Men, but Macdonald and the Seahawks helped Big Cat find his second wind and made the hefty price worth it, especially since those picks didn't amount to much.
The three-time Pro Bowler recorded seven sacks and a 38% run stop win rate last season en route to his first-ever All-Pro nomination. And at 6-foot-5 and 310 pounds with the versatility to line up all across the defensive line, he's turned into a true game-changer that even double teams cannot stop.
Thankfully, the Giants can't feel too much regret since the Williams trade offered them the flexibility to trade for Brian Burns, but Tyler Nubin and Marcus Mbow are not worth it. They're both solid players, but neither of them is going to be the key piece for a Super Bowl team like Lenny was for the Seahawks.
Between Leonard Williams and Dexter Lawrence (who placed seventh), the New York Giants are dealing with the ghosts of defensive tackles past. In both cases, they were deemed early winners, but hopefully, the Sexy Dexy trade won't go through the same transformation that the Williams deal did.
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