Giants Trade Backup Linemen for Picks While Defensive Tackle Room Stays Thin
Four months after trading Dexter Lawrence, the Giants have one proven starter at defensive tackle. Ryan Dunleavy, ESPN and a Bears trade rumor flagged the gap this week.
The Giants have traded two backup offensive linemen for late-round draft picks in the past eight days. They have not added a defensive tackle since a waiver claim in May, nearly four months after trading away three-time Pro Bowler Dexter Lawrence II.
The Giants traded Lawrence to the Cincinnati Bengals on April 18 for the No. 10 overall pick in this year's draft, according to the trade announcement on Giants.com. The Bengals signed him to a one-year, $28 million extension the next day, NFL.com reported. Four months later, that position is the only spot on the roster the Giants have not reinforced since.
Who Are the Giants' Defensive Tackles Now?
The current defensive tackle group, per the Giants' final unofficial depth chart released Aug. 25 and the team's own transaction announcements, is: D.J. Reader, a free agent addition, at starting nose tackle; Leki Fotu behind him; rookie sixth-round pick Bobby Jamison-Travis, third on the chart at nose tackle; and Zacch Pickens, claimed off waivers from the Chiefs on May 5, according to the transaction announcement on Giants.com. Shelby Harris, another offseason addition to the defensive line, has also been in the mix, though he has been listed at defensive end rather than inside the interior tackle rotation.
Darius Alexander opened camp as a starter alongside Reader and Harris. Alexander struggled against the run in the Giants' preseason opener and was demoted afterward. Chauncey Golston, signed to a three-year, $18 million contract last offseason to rotate at outside linebacker, took over Alexander's role in the base defense, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reported Aug. 22. Duggan attributed the demotion to Alexander's run defense rather than his pass rush. In that preseason opener against Minnesota, Alexander recorded two solo tackles and no sack, according to ESPN's official box score for the game; the only Giants defenders credited with a sack were Colton Hood and Kayvon Thibodeaux. Alexander started again the following week against Miami, with Reader and Harris rested, but remained in the game deep into the third quarter. Duggan wrote that is not typical playing time for a player expected to have a big role. "Clearly, the coaching staff needs to see more from Alexander against the run," Duggan wrote. "He could even lose his role on passing downs to Golston if he doesn't pick it up."
No player has been added to the group since the Pickens waiver claim more than three months ago.
How Bad Is the Giants' Defensive Tackle Room, by the Numbers?
PFF ranked the Giants' defensive line 21st out of 32 teams entering the season, according to PFF's own team-by-team rankings, published Aug. 18. That same article identified the interior as the specific weakness: "The concern is on the interior, where all three projected starters earned PFF run-defense grades below 65.0 last season."
Reader was the only Giant to crack PFF's list of the top 32 interior defensive linemen for 2026, ranking No. 26, according to PFF's own interior-defender rankings, published Aug. 5. Dexter Lawrence, the player the Giants traded away, ranked No. 4 on the same list with the Bengals. PFF's player page for Reader credits him with a 68.9 overall grade in 2025, a 72.6 pass-rush grade and a 61.7 run-defense grade. PFF's interior-defender rankings article states he has never posted a pass-rush or run-defense grade below 60.0 in his 10-year career.
Why the Giants' Defensive Tackle Room Got This Thin
Roy Robertson-Harris tore his right Achilles in an offseason workout in May and opened training camp on the physically unable to perform list. The Giants placed him on injured reserve Aug. 5, ending his season, according to the Associated Press. He was 33 at the time.
That left the interior line to Reader, Harris, Alexander and Jamison-Travis by August, the AP reported at the time of the Robertson-Harris move. That is largely the same group, with Pickens also in the mix, that exists today.
Giants Traded Two Backup Offensive Linemen for Late Picks in August
In the same window, the Giants moved twice on the other side of the line. They traded guard Daniel Faalele to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a 2027 sixth-round pick on Aug. 19, according to the trade announcement on Giants.com. Six days later, they traded guard Joshua Ezeudu to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2028 seventh-round pick, the New York Post's Ryan Dunleavy reported Aug. 25; no team confirmation of the trade's terms has been published independently of that reporting. Both deals cleared roster-bubble depth the Giants no longer needed ahead of Sunday's cut to 53 players.
No comparable move has addressed the defensive tackle position.
The Giants' Defensive Tackle Need Keeps Coming Up This Week
Dunleavy flagged the mismatch himself. In an Aug. 24 post on X, he listed three trade-related items to watch, including one aimed squarely at the position:
"Giants moving a draft pick (like the one they got for Daniel Faalele) for a backup DT."
Two days later, Giants Wire reported the Chicago Bears are making defensive tackle Gervon Dexter available in trade talks and floated the Giants as a plausible fit given their need. Giants Wire reported no Giants interest has been confirmed by either side.
That same morning, ESPN draft analyst Jordan Reid released an updated 2027 mock draft that had the Giants taking Ole Miss defensive tackle Will Echoles at No. 9.
"The Giants traded away star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II this offseason, creating a gaping hole in their defensive interior."
Dunleavy's post, the Giants Wire report on Dexter and Reid's mock draft were published within 48 hours of each other.
What's Next for the Giants at Defensive Tackle
The Giants must cut to 53 players by 6 p.m. Sunday. Giants Wire reported the team holds the fifth waiver priority after cutdown, which would give it an early claim on any defensive tackle released by another team. It is unclear whether the Giants will pursue a trade, as Dunleavy suggested, or wait for a waiver claim. No reporting indicates which path the team prefers.