The first step in the massive undertaking of replacing the massive Dexter Lawrence came last weekend in the sixth round of the draft. The next step came Wednesday when the Giants signed veteran Shelby Harris to a one-year deal.
No one individual will be able to replicate what Lawrence brought to the defense and so the plan is to attack the problem with multiple players. Another veteran could be signed in the days to come.
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tRY IT NOWIn the draft, the Giants selected Bobby Jamison-Travis from Auburn in the sixth round. He is a 328-pound run stuffer.
Harris is not nearly that big — 6-foot-2, 288 pounds — but arrives as a durable player with a track record of subduing opposing rushing attacks.
He has played 146 NFL games (89 starts) with only 28.5 career sacks. He has played for the Raiders, Broncos, Seahawks and Browns, quite a run for a 2014 seventh-round pick from Illinois State.
In 17 games (five starts) in 2025 for the Browns, Harris had 32 tackles (seven tackles for loss) and one sack.
The Giants also brought in another veteran, D.J. Reader, for a pre-draft visit. He remains on the radar, along with 39-year-old Calais Campbell and other options.
The Giants are signing veteran defensive tackle Shelby Harris. Getty Images
Lawrence and the Giants could not agree on a contract extension, and Lawrence eventually soured on the organization and requested a trade. The Giants sent him to the Bengals for the No. 10 pick in this year’s draft, using it to select offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa, the top-rated offensive lineman on their board.
Mauigoa is expected to start at right guard.
Veteran Roy Robertson-Harris and Darius Alexander, the 2025 third-round pick, are defensive tackle options already on the roster.
