Dexter Lawrence Put Up a Career-Low 0.5 Sacks, And Nobody's Talking About His Next Move

Okay, Emerald City, we gotta talk about something in the NFL that's got me scratching my head, even if it's not our boys in green and blue. Remember Dexter Lawrence? The guy was a dominant force, hitting career highs in 2024. Then 2025 happened, and his numbers dropped off a cliff. We're talking 0.5 sacks, folks! A half-sack! That's it. It’s wild, and frankly, I think the league isn’t paying enough attention to what this dude is saying as he heads into 2026.

From Beast Mode to Barely There: What Happened in 2025?

Let's rewind real quick. In 2024, Lawrence was a monster, bagging a career-high nine sacks. He was on a roll, making three straight Pro Bowl appearances. Then, the 2025 season hit him like a ton of bricks. He only managed a career-low 0.5 sacks and just eight quarterback hits. Yeah, you read that right, eight QB hits. His Pro Bowl streak? Gone. Finished. You see those numbers, and you're thinking, "What in the world went wrong?" Well, Pro Football Focus has one answer: Lawrence faced the fifth-highest double-team rate among defensive tackles last season, getting smothered on 70.35 percent of his snaps. That’s insane. How's a guy supposed to get to the QB when two blockers are on him almost every single play?

New Team, New Attitude: Lawrence is Read

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y to Silence Doubters Now, here's where it gets interesting. Lawrence is rolling into 2026 with a chip on his shoulder, and you know what? I love to see it. He's on a new team, and he's not letting those 2025 numbers define him. Just last week, he told Joe Reedy of the Associated Press, "I’m more managing it now, because you can’t really beat up on other teams. So during the season you just let it go and you flow." He's keeping that calm, focused energy. And this is the money quote: "I know how I approach this game and my impact to the game, even when it doesn’t show up on the sack numbers." He knows his worth, even when the box score doesn't tell the whole story. His new team, the Bengals, clearly believe him too. They picked him up, and they didn't stop there. They also added defensive tackle Jonathan Allen and edge rushers Boye Mafe and Cashius Howell to that defensive line. Think about that rotation! His new teammate, Boye Mafe, summed it up perfectly, saying, “We know the caliber of player he is. Having him on our side, it makes it so much easier. It makes everyone’s job around us easier. He’s a calming presence because we have him on our side.” That kind of talent around him could seriously cut down on those double teams, freeing Lawrence up to do what he does best. We'll be watching to see if this new setup lets him unleash the beast we all know he can be.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.