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Giants star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence has requested a trade and will not participate in the team’s offseason workout program beginning Tuesday, per CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones.

Lawrence, 28, is entering the third year of a four-year, $90 million extension he signed in May 2023. At the time, the deal gave him the third-largest contract on a per-year basis ($22.5 million AAV) among interior defensive linemen, trailing only Aaron Donald and Jeffery Simmons. Now, however, that $22.5 million figure is tied for 11th at the position.

Lawrence’s extension followed a breakout 2022 campaign in which he recorded 7.5 sacks and earned second-team All-Pro honors. He repeated that recognition in 2023, and in 2024, he was again a Pro Bowler after posting career highs with nine sacks and eight tackles for loss.

In 2025, however, Lawrence managed just a half-sack despite playing all 17 games for the first time in his career. His 31 tackles were also a career low. He still ranked 11th among interior defensive linemen in Pro Football Focus grades, though it marked a significant drop-off from 2022-24, when he ranked second, first and third.

In October, former Giants star Carl Banks, now a team radio analyst, sharply criticized Lawrence, saying “nobody respects you anymore.” Lawrence fired back, noting how often he is double-teamed and calling Banks “delusional.”

Lawrence remains one of the game’s most disruptive interior forces, and his displeasure presents a notable early challenge for John Harbaugh in his first year with New York. On paper, the Giants have a talented defensive front, with Lawrence alongside Brian Burns (16.5 sacks, second-team All-Pro in 2025), 2025 first-round pick Abdul Carter and 2022 first-round pick Kayvon Thibodeaux. However, New York allowed a league-worst 5.3 yards per rush and finished 17th in sack rate in 2025. Harbaugh also brought in Dennard Wilson as the…

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The Cincinnati Bengals made a solid move to bolster their defensive line by bringing in decorated veteran Jonathan Allen. He’ll undoubtedly provide a nice boost to the interior while also offering valuable leadership to the squad.

Initial reports had the club signing the 31-year-old to a two-year deal worth up to $25 million. Over the Cap has divulged further details about the deal, including the breakdown of cap hits, cash dispersal, and the outlook for both 2026 and 2027.

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Cincinnati alleviated the first-year cap hit ($9.75 million) to some degree, but it balloons in the second year ($15.2 million). This structure gives the Bengals flexibility to exit the second year of the contract should Allen not pan out after this season, as they would free up $11.5 million in 2027 cap space with minimal dead cap.

After the signings of Allen, Boye Mafe, and Bryan Cook, the Bengals have a little north of $20 million in cap space. A new class of rookies will eat into that, likely leaving the Bengals with minimal “rental-type” deals with veterans over the next few weeks and months.

The next couple of nuances exemplify how the Bengals operate differently from almost every other NFL franchise. Restructuring the recent mega-deals for Joe Burrow and/or Ja’Marr Chase to limit their respective 2026 cap hits (which combine for roughly $74 million of the team’s 2026 cap) could be an option, but that would be unprecedented territory for Cincinnati’s front office.

When asked at the Combine about restructuring Burrow’s deal to allow more free-agency flexibility, he noted the team was “open” to that idea but also toed the company line about maintaining cap integrity for future years.

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And for those wondering why the Bengals didn’t make a splash at linebacker in the first week in conjunction with their early moves, the trio of starting defenders they signed has the three highest 2026 cap hits of any free-agent signees in the league. This pushed the…

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The NFL informed the Chicago Bears that they will not receive compensatory draft picks for former assistant general manager Ian Cunningham, who departed to lead the Atlanta Falcons’ front office. 

Chicago appealed the NFL’s initial decision to deny compensatory picks after losing Cunningham, who spent the previous four seasons in Chicago. The NFL, however, once again determined that Cunningham is not considered the “primary football executive” with the Falcons. In Atlanta, Cunningham will report to Matt Ryan, the former Falcons MVP quarterback who was tabbed as the team’s new president of football operations earlier this offseason. 

In 2020, NFL owners approved a proposal to reward teams for developing minority coaches and front-office executives who grow into head coaches or general managers. Teams that lose a minority coach or executive to a head coach or general manager job with another team are slated to receive a third-round compensatory pick for two consecutive years. 

The Los Angeles Rams, for example, received third-round compensatory picks in the 2021 and 2022 drafts after former Los Angeles executive Brad Holmes became the Detroit Lions executive president and general manager. Holmes directly reports to Rod Wood, the team’s president and CEO. 

The NFL awarded 33 compensatory picks to 15 teams on March 9. The Bears were not among the teams that received a compensatory pick. 

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