The New York Giants received a trade request from Dexter Lawrence this week. Lawrence has arguably been the team’s best and most consistent player over the last few years. Although head coach John Harbaugh was not surprised by the news, the request still alarmed many.
On Friday, former Giants running back Tiki Barber appeared at New Jersey Lottery’s second annual Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament at American Dream Mall. While at the event, Barber spoke with Giants Wire and was asked whether he thought Dexter Lawrence would be in a Giants uniform this coming season, given the trade request earlier in the week.
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“I do expect him to be, and I want him to be in a Giants uniform,” Barber said. “We know if he’s at his best, there’s not very many better than him. But his contract and its timing sucks. His contract got passed multiple times immediately after signing.
“Last year was a disappointing year for him, and I think for the expectations for him. But he’s still a great player. The last thing you want to do is move on from great players. My point is, I think they’ll get the job done. I think they’ll figure out a way to get it done.”
Barber had previously commented on Lawrence when news of the trade request first broke.
The former All-Pro running back remains heavily involved in football. Barber co-hosts on WFAN and recently rejoined the Giants to cover the team for pregame and postgame shows.
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Like most of the Giants community, Barber feels strongly that Lawrence needs to remain part of this team moving forward. From Harbaugh’s comments earlier this week, it seems both sides would prefer for Lawrence to stay in a Giants uniform.
Barber also noted that it would have been better if the trade request had not gone public, while acknowledging it was a necessary tactic for Lawrence’s representatives to apply pressure on the Giants to reach a deal.
“No, no, no, no. I think it was… it’s what you do from a business side,” Barber said. “When you get a new regime, you put pressure on the new regime. I think the only thing I didn’t like is that it became public. But I think it probably had to become public because the Giants weren’t going to do anything. And being in that situation not only once, really, you realize that sometimes you gotta put pressure where pressure needs to be applied. But again, I think it’s gonna get done. It’s just a matter of when.”
While many believe a deal will ultimately get done, the trade request has likely prompted other teams to check in on the Giants’ star interior lineman until an agreement is reached. With the 2026 NFL draft less than two weeks away, it will be interesting to see whether the two sides can finalize a contract before then.
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This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Tiki Barber expects Dexter Lawrence to remain with New York Giants
