New York Giants' Dexter Lawrence intends to play through elbow injury

The elbow injury that landed New York Giants Pro Bowl defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence on injured reserve (IR) for the final five games of the 2024 season is back, and it has been affecting his play to the point where it's been noticeable.

Lawrence has not been himself, for sure, and the Giants' defense has been the worse for wear. They are dead last in the NFL in stopping the run this year and have not been getting after passers as frequently as they hoped.

Last week in Detroit, Lawrence was off the field when Lions' running back Jahmyr Gibbs ran 69 yards untouched for the winning touchdown in overtime. He wanted to be out there, but the elbow kept him on the sidelines. He took heat after the game from sources who were not in the know about his injury.

"I just took a couple of hits to it, and it kind of flared up a little bit during the game, early in the game," Lawrence told reporters on Saturday. "But I've been hitting recovery hard, so I feel good.

"Obviously, I want to be on the field as one of the better players on the team, but that wasn't the plan in that moment. Me and (defensive line coach Andre Patterson) Dre, we had something good working, and they so happened to break it on the first play, and that's just how the game works sometimes. But I love playing football, and I’m going to be on the field when I can."

Asked if he would be out on the field when the Giants face off against the New England Patriots on Monday night in Foxborough, Lawrence had no doubts.

"I'm playing. I’m playing. Don't worry about that," he said. " I don't know the plan right now. Like I said, I went out there today, felt good running around, putting my hands on people."

The Giants will be playing their first game since defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was fired last Monday. He was replaced by outside linebackers coach Charlie Bullen, who has never been a coordinator on any level in his career.

"It's a weird business. He's (Bullen) been around the defense, so we've heard his voice, and he's talked. Different seeing him up front, leading the whole group, but it's been a smooth transition, I guess you could say. He's not going outside of the box, anything else type of thing. So, I like the game plan, I'm excited for it, and I'm ready to go," Lawrence said.

Lawrence said that the transition from Bowen to Bullen has been basically a seamless one.

"He's keeping it simple. He's allowing the guys just to fly around and be players, he's teaching that aggressiveness, that defensive swag that we should have," he said. "Even with five games left, just playing with your all, playing for each other, and showing that you are not going to quit on your guys and just keep playing."

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants' Dexter Lawrence intends to play through elbow injury