Andre Patterson knows where Dexter Lawrence II plays his best football, and the defensive line coach for the New York Giants would never change the All-Pro nose tackle’s primary position.
Patterson made it clear he doesn’t want to see Lawrence move away from over center, per Dan Duggan of The Athletic: “Never going to happen. He’s the best nose guard in the league. You want to get me fired? Why would you take a guy off the center that they have to find a way how to handle that guy? Never. He’s the best in the league at what he does. I would never do that.”
Of course, the final call on where Lawrence lines up and when doesn’t rest with his position coach. New defensive coordinator Shane Bowen could have a few schematic wrinkles in mind for how to unleash the most talented member of the Giants’ front seven.
Patterson has a point, though, based on how dominant Lawrence has been playing over the ball. It’s a role he made his own last season.
Duggan referenced a post from Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus to help illustrate the point by citing Lawrence’s NFL-leading pressure rate when playing the zero technique.
Keeping Lawrence where he does his best work can be a sign the Giants will move to a more conventional system on Bowen’s watch.
Dexter Lawrence a Game-Wrecker in Straightforward Role
Keeping Lawrence in the middle makes sense when he wrecks the interior so often. His awesome push on the pass pocket is the driving force behind how the Giants create pressure.
Lawrence is so effective playing over center he’s able to combine raw power with elite takeoff speed. The combination helped No. 97 generate a league-leading 12 pressures when “the quarterback takes three or fewer steps in his dropback,” per Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar.
Teams can’t block Lawrence one-on-one when he plays nose guard. Nor can they keep the 26-year-old under wraps with double or even triple teams.
The Buffalo Bills found that out the hard way in Week 6 on a play highlighted by Nick Falato of SB Nation’s Big Blue View.
Lawrence is most disruptive at his natural position. Keeping players where they fit best may not be creative, nor exciting, but it could help the Giants finally play up to their talent level on defense.
Giants Pairing Down Defensive Scheme
Bowen replacing Don ‘Wink’ Martindale as play caller should pair down what was an aggressive, but overly complex scheme. Martindale loved to blitz and also enjoyed moving personnel around to create different looks.
Sometimes that involved shifting Lawrence off the line of scrimmage and asking the 340 pounder to operate as a standup linebacker. It wasn’t an idea that found favor with NorthJersey.com’s Art Stapleton.
As Stapleton pointed out, Patterson doesn’t sound like he’d welcome more movement from Lawrence. Fortunately, Bowen’s scheme will be focused more on taking away opponent tendencies, rather than manufacturing exotic pressure looks.
The change will mean less blitzing. Bowen’s 2023 defense for the Tennessee Titans had a modest blitz percentage of just 22, compared with Martindale and the Giants blitzing 45.4 percent of the time, second-most in the NFL, per Pro Football Reference.
This shift in styles should see Big Blue rely on four-man pressure more often. Something Lawrence can lead from where he does his best work.
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