Things went from bad to worse after the New York Giants’ Week 13 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day.
“Giants potential defensive player of the year Dexter Lawrence, who suffered a dislocated elbow in the loss to the Cowboys, is expected to miss the rest of the season, with [head coach] Brian Daboll saying it’s ‘long-term,’” NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport relayed on November 29, otherwise known as Black Friday.
Rapoport added that “with 5 games to go, Lawrence has no choice but to look to 2025.”
Just after the Lawrence news, Rapoport reported another “likely” season-ending injury to Giants starting tight end Theo Johnson, per Daboll. Johnson suffered a “foot injury” on Thanksgiving.
These two expected “season-ending injuries” were confirmed by New York Post beat reporter Paul Schwartz, among others.
Giants’ Dexter Lawrence Was in the Midst of a Career Season in 2024
Despite the Giants’ 2-10 record, Lawrence was in the midst of a career season. The game wrecker had already achieved 9.0 sacks in his first 12 starts, which is a career-high — and that’s with opposing offensive lines double-teaming him often throughout the year.
Lawrence also logged a career-best 8 tackles for a loss, and his production from the nose tackle position was practically unheard of.
“Dexter Lawrence [has] 96 pressures when lined up at nose tackle since 2022,” PFF NY Giants noted on November 26. “The next closest player? 19 pressures.”
Lawrence will finish the first 13 weeks of the 2024 campaign second behind star edge rusher Brian Burns in quarterback pressures — per Pro Football Focus. He also ranked fifth for all Giants in terms of key defensive stops, and fourth in average depth of tackle on run defense (minimum 50 run defense snaps).
Needless to say, his presence will be sorely missed for the remainder of the year, but the priority will be having Lawrence healthy and ready to go in 2025.
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