The New York Giants extended the contracts of two of their best players this offseason when they inked both left tackle Andrew Thomas and nose tackle Dexter Lawrence to long-term deals.
Thomas and Lawrence are each coming off career years and were arguably the best at their respective positions across the NFL.
On Monday, the Athletic released their list of the Top 25 Players 25 Years Old or Under as voted on by NFL executives and coaches.
Lawrence checked in at No. 13 overall.
13. DT Dexter Lawrence, New York Giants, age: 25 (11/12/97)
Lawrence thrived in Don “Wink” Martindale’s defense last season, recording 7 1/2 sacks, 68 tackles (seven for a loss) and 28 quarterback hits, all career highs. He has established himself as one of the best young interior linemen in the game.
Lawrence, who will turn 26 mid-season, was a constant disruptor in 2022 and one of the best pass rushers in the entire league — an impressive feat as an interior defensive lineman.
Next up was Thomas, who checked in one spot higher at No. 12 overall.
12. OT Andrew Thomas, New York Giants, age: 24 (1/22/99)
As a third-year pro, Thomas surrendered just three sacks as the blind-side protector for a much-improved Daniel Jones and also played a role in Saquon Barkley’s resurgence while earning second-team All-Pro honors.
After struggling during his rookie season, Thomas has been steadily improving and became a model of consistency for Big Blue in 2022.
Despite being ranked ahead of Lawrence on this list, Thomas was recently left off the NFL Top 100 of 2023 list.
Thomas was also recently named the Giants’ most important non-quarterback.
The Giants’ success this season will likely depend on the performances of both Thomas and Lawrence. Their spots on this list are well-deserved and it’s certainly nice for the Giants to have a solid player to build around on each side of the trenches.
