MUNICH — Dexter Lawrence will need no introduction Sunday when he lines up at nose tackle opposite Panthers center Cade Mays.
Mays spent the first month of this season on the Giants' practice squad, meaning he had a bit of a run-in with Lawrence on the practice field during three weeks in September and the first week of October.
“I wrote in my notes this week, 'Be respectful and don't take anything lightly,'” Lawrence said. “So my mindset is the same every week, which is to go out there and try to destroy the game as best I can and play to the best of my ability.”
Mays, 25, was a sixth-round pick by the Panthers out of Tennessee in 2022.
He played in 27 games over two years, starting seven of them.
He was released in late August and the Giants acquired him.
The Panthers removed him from the Giants' practice squad on October 8 after injuries hit the Panthers' offensive line.
Due to an injury to Ikem Ekwonu, Brady Christensen moved from center to left tackle in last week's win over the Saints, with Mays filling in at center.
Lawrence is coming off an unusually quiet game. He had six tackles but no sacks or quarterback hits in a 27-22 loss to the Commanders.
Lawrence ranks second in the NFL with nine sacks, while the Panthers have only 10 as a team, and last week the Giants went without for the first time this season. They continue to lead the league with 35.
And now Lawrence is targeting Mays.
“He probably talks about me a lot because they like to talk about me over there. He thinks he knows me, but I've grown up in a few weeks. I did,” Lawrence said.
Feelings towards Brian Barnes' old club were a little stronger overseas.
He will play against the Panthers for the first time since being traded to the Giants in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick, a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick.
Barnes subsequently signed a five-year, $141 million contract extension.
Barnes spent five seasons with the Panthers. After saying earlier this week that he had no intention of taking this fight as a revenge fight, he said after Friday's practice in Munich that he was “a little bit more motivated.”
Daniel Jones grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a Panthers fan.
He is 2-0 against his favorite childhood team, winning both games played at MetLife Stadium in 2021 and 2022.
“Yeah, that’s cool,” Jones said. “I think it gives you an insight into your journey and how far you've come playing against the team you grew up rooting for. It's definitely a cool experience. But when the ball is kicked off and the game starts… When the time comes, it will be like any other game.”
This is the NFL's fifth and final international game of the season.
This will be the second match to be played at the Allianz Arena, the home ground of FC Bayern Munich.
The first game in Germany was in 2022, when Tom Brady's Buccaneers defeated the Seahawks 21-16 in the Bavarian capital.
There were two NFL games in Frankfurt in 2023.
K Graham Gano was placed on injured reserve and will return for this game. …WR Isaiah Hodgins and LB Curtis Bolton were promoted from the practice squad.
