The New York Giants have one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL with Dexter Lawrence, and he continued his standout play into the new season as he was named to Pro Football Focus’ Team of The Week for the opening week of the regular season.
Dexter Lawrence was phenomenal in the Giants’ season opener
Lawrence recorded six pressures, the most among interior defensive linemen in Week One, despite the Giants’ abysmal performance overall, as they lost the season opener at MetLife Stadium by a score of 28-6 to the Minnesota Vikings.
However, Lawrence was a bright spot on defense, putting pressure on Vikings’ quarterback Sam Darnold and making plays in the pass rush. He also recorded the Giants’ only sack of the game, which came on the Vikings’ second offensive play in the first quarter.
Giants’ head coach Brian Daboll lauded Lawrence’s efforts from the game during his media session on Monday.
“I’d say the pressure was really good inside with Dexter when he was lined up in there,” said Daboll via Giants.com’s Matt Citak.
Lawrence finished with the fourth-highest PFF grade of all defensive players for Week One, as he logged an excellent 92.6 overall grade. Only Julian Love, Aidan Hutchinson, and T.J. Watt finished with higher PFF grades for the opening week.
That same grade led all interior defensive players for Week One, and he also had the highest pressure grade for his position group with a 92.3 grade in that department. Lawrence was arguably the best-performing defensive lineman in the entire league for Week One, and it is fitting given his exceptional resume over the past few seasons.
The Giants will want to see more out of Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns as well
The Giants would have liked to see more from the pass-rush trio of Lawrence, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and newcomer Brian Burns, as the latter two were fairly quiet in the season opener. The pair combined for just four tackles and recorded no tackles for a loss. Thibodeaux was even benched periodically in favor of Azeez Ojulari during the game.
The hope is that those two will find their footing and form the fearful defensive trio with Lawrence that was advertised all offseason. The Giants have a lot to clean up on both sides of the ball before their Week Two matchup with the Washington Commanders, but they can feel good knowing that Lawrence is still playing at an All-Pro level.