Dexter Lawrence contract shows how new deals help Giants create cap space

Before signing his new contract, Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence was due to count $12.4 million against this season’s salary cap.

Now, thanks to Lawrence’s four-year extension, the Giants have lowered Lawrence’s 2023 cap hit to $6.653 million, per sources, freeing up more money that GM Joe Schoen can use to run the rest of his team this year.

That’s because Lawrence’s extension, which puts him under contract through 2027, includes $22 million of his $59 million total guarantees as a signing bonus. This cap charge gets spread evenly through the five years of his new contract.

A low $2.253 million base salary in 2023, plus the $4.4 million annual proration of his signing bonus, keeps Lawrence’s cost down in Year 1.

This is the side benefit of signing a top player to a long-term deal, and it is why possible upcoming extensions for left tackle Andrew Thomas and running back Saquon Barkley could further help the Giants’ short-term cause.

“It was a stressful time, but it’s over now, and it’s time to play football,” Lawrence said of the negotiations.

The Giants are now showing $5.99 million in cap space as a team in the NFLPA’s database, but their top three draft picks remain unsigned. Defensive tackle Leonard Williams is still carrying a cumbersome, team-high $32.2 million cap hit.

And while the Giants already proved they could navigate a season while cap-strapped in 2022, they would prefer to have funds available for midseason needs and, eventually, be healthy enough to carry over cap space into future years.

Daniel Jones would have cost $32.4 million this year on the franchise tag; now his 2023 cap hit is $21.7 million thanks to his new contract.

Lawrence was supposed to come in at $12.4 million, and now he’s at $6.6 million.

Thomas, who is scheduled to count $10.2 million this season, and Barkley ($10.1 million) could be next.

Of course, there is always a price to pay down the road when you backload a contract to free up cap space for the present day, like how Jones’ cap hit jumps to $45 million in 2024. And Schoen doesn’t want to “major” in that, as he has said several times this offseason.

Lawrence’s annual salary cap hit rises to $21.9 million in 2024, $21.4 million 2025, $24.4 million in 2026 and $26.4 million in 2027.

Lawrence has $59 million total guaranteed in the extension: the $22 million signing bonus and $37 million worth of base salary.

That includes his $2.253 million base salary in 2023, his $16 million and $15.5 million base salaries in 2024 and 2025, respectively, and $3.247 million of his $18.5 million base salary in 2026.

The contract also includes $4 million worth of per-game roster bonuses: $1 million per year from 2024-2027. That means Lawrence will have $58,823.53 in bonus money on the line every week during those seasons.

There is also a $2.5 million roster bonus in the final 2027 season, when none of Lawrence’s $18 million salary is guaranteed. And he has $500,000 in annual workout bonuses from 2024-2027.

That’s an interesting amount of money tied up in Lawrence’s ability to stay on the field, considering he’s started 57 of a possible 64 regular season games through four years

Does he feel pressure to live up to the contract that ties him for third among NFL defensive tackles with Washington’s Daron Payne at a $22.5 million annual average?

“Don’t feel pressure like that,” Lawrence said. “Simply because I prepare myself, and I know who I am as a player, and I know what I can do, and I know if I’m on top of what I’ve got to do, then everything takes care of itself. I don’t see it as pressure. I embrace it.”

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