Dexter Lawrence is more of a monster of the Meadowlands than anyone ever imagined or thought he could be.
He has 340 pounds of unblockable inner strength and is very similar to the heir to the Aaron Donald throne.
“Aaron Donald is the greatest player to play this position. I feel…well, he's definitely up there,” Lawrence told the Post. “I still have a lot to prove, but I don't think I'm at a point yet that I'm sure I can get to. I have to go out there every year and prove it. I think greatness is consistency over time, and that's what I'm trying to do.”
No one would argue with the idea that Dexter Lawrence could have always played for the Giants.
“I think I could have played in any era,” Lawrence told the Post.
What would make him say such a thing?
“Because I know my attitude to the game and I understand their attitude to the game. Back then, it was just a bunch of stubborn guys working like it was a normal job. It was a group of people who just worked and talked a lot and got bloody every week. I'm that kind of player.”
Sexy Dexie (six sacks) was the straw that stirred the drink for defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, and was the biggest reason the Giants led the league with 22 sacks, but that was due to size, explosiveness, smarts, It's a rare combination of desire.
I asked him if he had ever seen the fear in the eyes of a defensive lineman.
“Sometimes, yes, I see it,” Lawrence said. “Then we must attack.”
It's not his trash talk that instills fear.
“Right now it’s probably something like a B-plus,” Lawrence said. “It's still early in the season.”
It is his relentless quest to dominate the man, or in his case, the men in front of him.
“How much more can I control him than he can control me?'' said Ms. Lawrence.
Is there anyone in the league who can overpower you?
“No, I don't think so,” Lawrence said. “Maybe there will be cavalry, but it will still be a tough job for them.”
When former general manager Dave Gettleman drafted him with the 17th pick in 2019 as part of the Odell Beckham Jr. trade with the Browns, he was thought to be little more than a helper. At the time, the deal was panned. Not now.
“Some of the things he has to do is can he fight through the double teams that he has,” Brian Daboll said. “It's not easy. There were some three-man moments on him last week. He understands that when he gets his chance, he has to let them go…The fact that he's on our football team. I am very grateful.”
Triple team?
“I tell them they have to be honest,” Lawrence said. “It's going to be hard to block me one-on-one. It's part of my job, it's where I am in my career, and I accept that. I don't want it to be a punishment. I don't think I'm trying to prevent anything or anything. It's who I am and my world I live in, I just have to accept it.”
Especially now that Kayvon Thibodeau (wrist surgery Wednesday morning) is expected to miss Sunday night's game against Joe Burrow and the Bengals, and likely beyond.
“When you impose your will, you put someone in a situation where you can't stop them,” Lawrence said. “In my eyes, that's a dominant defensive lineman.”
Brian Burns apparently stopped by because he saw Lawrence in a Chunky Soup commercial. “Does that chunky soup help that?” Barnes wanted to know.
“Yeah, I'm getting a bag to help with hunger, that's for sure,” Lawrence said and laughed.
Barnes: “He can't block one-on-one. Not at all. At least not for the whole game.”
Micah McFadden was asked what it was like playing behind Sexy Dexie.
“It's easy,” McFadden said and laughed. “He's really good at taking on double teams, which is one of the hardest things for a defensive lineman to do. Obviously, he's usually as big as both of the linemen blocking him. Having people like that is a weapon, man.”
Lawrence has grown tremendously as a leader and believes the best is yet to come.
“I don't think I've exceeded my limits,” Lawrence said.
I was asked why I was standing at my locker with my sunshade on.
“It's just to look cool,” Sexy Dexie said, smiling. Only a fool would tell him otherwise.
