Giants 2026 Position Breakdown: Making Up For Dexter Lawrence In The Aggregate

Heading into the 2026 season, the Giants are coming off yet another disappointing season that saw them go 4-13, with head coach Brian Daboll fired midway through.

But with new head coach John Harbaugh comes a new energy and a belief that this Giants team can take a big step forward.

In this series, we’ll break down the depth chart for every position group. This time, we’ll go in-depth along the interior defensive line…

Projected depth chart

Starters: Shelby Harris, DJ Reader (nose tackle), Darius Alexander
Key Backups: Leki Fotu, Chauncey Golston
Key additions/losses: Signed Harris and Reader, traded Dexter Lawrence
Top Performer in 2025: Alexander, who only started two games but had 3.5 sacks in 16 total games
2025 ranking via PFF: 121st among 134 qualified players

What Giants defensive linemen have going for them

The Giants interior defensive line is going to look a lot different in 2026. With Dexter Lawrence now a Cincinnati Bengal following an offseason trade (more on him below), the Giants are seemingly relying on a couple of veteran players to anchor their line. 

Reader, now 32, is a huge body in the middle (6-foot-3, 330 pounds). And he fits the mold of what new head coach John Harbaugh likes from his nose tackles. Just see Michael Pierce in Baltimore. He's never been much of a pass-rusher, as evidenced by his 12.5 sacks in 10 career NFL seasons, but Reader's job will be to plug the middle of the line and stuff the run on every opportunity that he gets. 

The 34-year-old Harris is a bit more of a pass-rushing threat, but like Reader he'll be relied upon more as a veteran presence than a pure playmaker.

Alexander is the player to watch. A third-round pick a year ago, Alexander could very well see an expanded role in his second pro season. He played in 16 games last season, but started just two of them. He could be the wild card up front for Big Blue in 2026.

One thing to note here is that there's a good chance that Kayvon Thibodeaux could bump inside from his usual edge rusher spots to play more of a defensive tackle role, specifically in passing downs. Getting Thibodeaux, Brian Burns, and Abdul Carter on the field together gives the Giants there best pass-rushing group.

Key concern for 2026: No more Sexy Dexy

Lawrence, from 2022-24, was among the best defensive tackles in football. He made the Pro Bowl all three years and racked up 21.0 sacks, looking like not just a tremendous run-stopper, but a true pass-rush option as well. 

But he took a step back in 2025, tallying just one half-sack while appearing to play most of the season out of his usual playing shape. Lawrence was also openly looking for a new contract despite just signing an extension in May 2023. 

With that in mind, the Giants decided this offseason was the time to move on. 

How do you replace a tree-time Pro-Bowler? That's the question the Giants knew they would have to answer when they traded Lawrence to the Bengals for a first-round pick. Clearly, the Giants believe they can do it. 

Player who must step up in 2025: Alexander

This is the chance for the former third-round pick to really make his mark. The depth chart is not very strong around him, with primarily aging veterans making up the rest of the room.

Especially with Roy Robertson-Harris tearing his Achilles in May, the Giants are going to need Alexander to be a playmaker along the line.

Biggest camp battle: The backup depth

This is an overall weak spot for the Giants, but one or more of the players lower on the depth chart is going to need to step up during camp and earn a job as a rotational player. 

The Giants' depth chart includes Chauncey Golston, Sam Roberts, Bobby Jamison-Travis, and Zacch Pickens, among others. 

Overall 2026 outlook

If the Giants defense struggles in 2026, all outside eyes will be on the interior defensive line. That's what happens when you trade away a star player and don't replace him immediately with another player of his caliber. 

The Giants brought in a couple established veterans in Harris and Reader, but there's a lot of work to do, and it wouldn't be shocking to see the Giants try to add to this spot even further ahead of Week 1 of the regular season.