Jets fans owe Quinnen Williams a thank you after latest Dexter Lawrence drama

New York Jets fans should legitimately be thanking Quinnen Williams right now. Dexter Lawrence officially requested a trade from the New York Giants on Monday, and while the situation is still unfolding, one thing already seems abundantly clear.

The Giants may have just lost a not-so-insignificant amount of leverage. And for Jets fans, it’s a reminder of how differently things played out with their own former star defensive tackle less than a year ago.

Williams had reportedly requested a trade on multiple occasions before he was dealt to the Dallas Cowboys at last year’s deadline. The difference, however, is that he never went public with it. Those reports didn't surface until after the trade was already finalized.

That allowed the Jets to maintain maximum flexibility and leverage in negotiations with Jerry Jones and the Cowboys. The rest of the league didn’t know their All-Pro defensive tackle wanted out, and it allowed them to maximize their return in a way the Giants now might not be able to.

Jets fans should be thanking Quinnen Williams amidst the Dexter Lawrence situation

Lawrence’s situation is a bit more complicated. He’s been unhappy with his contract dating back to last offseason, when the Giants opted to add incentives instead of offering a new deal after the defensive tackle market exploded. That frustration carried into this year and ultimately led to Monday’s public trade request.

It also comes on the heels of a down season. Lawrence finished 2025 with just 0.5 sacks and 34 pressures, both significant drops from his production in recent years.

His 57.0 Pro Football Focus run defense grade was also one of the lowest marks of his career. That's not ideal for a player likely seeking a deal in the $26–29 million per year range, which would make him one of the highest-paid defensive tackles in football.

That said, a trade still feels unlikely at this point. This has all the signs of a leverage play on the part of Lawrence.

But if the Giants were to seriously explore moving him, expectations would need to be reset a little. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported that league-wide sentiment pegs Lawrence’s potential return somewhere in the range of a late first-round pick to a second-rounder.

That’s a far cry from what the Jets received for Williams. The Jets were able to land a 2027 first-round pick — the better of two between the Cowboys and Packers — along with a 2026 second-rounder in that deal. It was a massive return, one that was likely above market value.

And the only reason that happened was that Williams handled his situation privately, giving the Jets flexibility and control throughout the process. There was no public pressure, no urgency to move him, and no signal to the rest of the league that they had to act.

That's the key difference between these two situations. This isn't meant to be a "Quinnen Williams is better than Dexter Lawrence" take. That's a conversation for a different time.

But Giants fans expecting their team to land a similar trade package for Lawrence are likely going to be disappointed — that is, of course, if a trade actually materializes.

Either way, the Dexter Lawrence situation is yet another reminder for Jets fans that they should be glad Quinnen Williams kept things quiet. Thank you, Quinnen.