Dexter Lawrence listed as one of the best interior defensive linemen in the NFL

The Giants selected Lawrence with the 17th overall pick in the 2019 draft out of Clemson, and it didn’t take long for Lawrence to impress observers. He put me in mind of one of the more underrated massive IDL of his era.

2021 was Lawrence’s best NFL season to date, as he totaled three sacks, nine quarterback hits, 31 quarterback hurries, and 32 stops on just 427 pass-rushing snaps. Lawrence is also a plus run defender, as you’d expect from a guy standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 342 pounds. If you’re going to double-team Lawrence, as the Commanders started to do on this goal-line attempt by running back Antonio Gibson, you’d better stick with it. Here, center Keith Ismael peels off to deal with linebacker Tae Crowder’s blitz, and Lawrence has little trouble getting past right guard Brandon Scherff.

And if you want effort sacks, how about this takedown of Raiders quarterback Derek Carr in which Lawrence works away from the double-team and chases Carr down past the numbers?

The Giants have a new defensive coordinator in former Ravens expert Don “Wink” Martindale, and though Patrick Graham was certainly an asset to the organization in that role, it’ll be highly interesting to see how Lawrence eats in Martindale’s line concepts, which are among the NFL’s blitz-heaviest.