Ian Cunningham's first offseason as the general manager of the Atlanta Falcons has been defined by low-stakes signings and reclamation projects, which is a good roster-building strategy, but is far from the most entertaining offseason blueprint that a fanbase can watch their first-year GM implement.
Because of how slow things have been for the Falcons this offseason, some fans are starting to grow restless over the lack of splash moves made by this new regime. While some may argue that this roster is talented enough to not need too many big moves, but one is becoming impossible to ignore.
While Pro Football Focus' John Kosko named the top trade asset for all 32 teams before the 2026 NFL Draft, his pick for the Dirty Birds didn't exactly go over well. However, he named Dexter Lawrence as a potential trade chip for the New York Giants, and bringing him to Atlanta would be a dream move.
Do the Atlanta Falcons have what it takes to pull off a blockbuster trade for Dexter Lawrence?
It seems heavily unlikely that the Giants would trade Lawrence or that the Falcons would even be key players for him, but a man can dream. It would be hard to swing a deal for a superstar when you have no first-round pick, but it's hard to count out someone like Cunningham, who is always a strategist.
New York has deluded themselves into thinking they can instantly compete with the hire of John Harbaugh, but the reality is that they're still a year or two away from completing their rebuild. Not only is the NFC East a complete gauntlet, their roster has way more holes than their fanbase might realize.
The 28-year-old is coming off of a major down year in which he logged just 0.5 sacks after amassing nine sacks and eight tackles for loss in just 12 games in 2024. Despite sharing a defensive line with Brian Burns and Abdul Carter where it was impossible to double-team him, he looked much worse.
One of the biggest needs the Falcons still have this offseason is for a true nose tackle, and Sexy Dexy is regarded as the best nose tackle in the NFL. The biggest issue this defense has is finding someone to clog the middle, especially a superstar-caliber talent who can complement Brandon Dorlus and Ruke Orhorhoro.
David Onyemata is now gone and Zach Harrison is on the trade block, so I would love to see Atlanta make a run at the Clemson product. Not only is he an elite pass-rusher at DT, at 6-foot-4 and 340 pounds, he would almost certainly be a big help in the Falcons' quest to improve against the run.
According to Pro Football Focus, Lawrence's 75.9 PFF grade ranked ninth among all defensive tackles, while his 84.5 pass rush grade ranked seventh out of 134 qualified DL. So even in a down season, he still proved why he's one of the best in the NFL at what he does, even if his trade price decreased a bit. But this begs the question of whether or not Joe Schoen would actually deal him.
Unfortunately, I don't think his price tag decreased enough to the point that the Falcons' hopes of trading for him are any easier, which is why even if there's a chance, this is still just a pipe dream.