Dexter Lawrence injury update may have just sealed the No. 1 pick for the Giants

You might have thought that this New York Giants season has been as bad as it could possibly be. The offense has been among the worst in the league. The defense has gotten run over. The head coach is losing the locker room. And New York's record now sits at 2-10 after a Thanksgiving day loss to the rival Dallas Cowboys. Even the silver linings were as depressing as possible: The front office finally admitted defeat with Daniel Jones, but did so in a way that alienated the rest of the team and made clear that no one involved has a long-term plan in place.

But if the NFL has taught us anything, it's that the worst-case scenario can always, in fact, get worse. Which is what happened to the Giants on Thursday: In the midst of that 27-20 defeat to the Cowboys, the team lost its best player, All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, in the third quarter with an elbow injury. And while we still don't know quite what the prognosis is, it certainly seems like the Giants defense is in a world of trouble.

Dexter Lawrence's season in jeopardy after dislocated elbow vs. Cowboys

Lawrence met with the media after the game, telling reporters that he suffered a dislocated elbow. It's too early to tell whether surgery might be required, or whether the injury will end Lawrence's 2024 season. But at minimum New York figures to be without its defensive leader for multiple weeks, and given where we are in the season — and how little the Giants have to play for at this point — rushing him back seems like it would be a huge mistake.

Maybe it's for the best. Obviously you never want a player to get hurt, and hopefully Lawrence will be back on the field wrecking shop in the middle of New York's defense as soon as possible. But the Giants are in desperate need of a total reset, with Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen on the hot seat and the team finally moving on from Jones at quarterback. Tommy DeVito's Linsanity run last season was fun, but it wound up costing the team valuable draft position — and, potentially, the chance to draft Drake Maye this past spring.

If New York is about to hit the reset button, it needs as much draft capital as it can get its hands on. With Lawrence out, a Giants defense that already struggled against the run figures to offer even less resistance, and it's not like this offense is equipped to win shootouts moving forward. New York is already well-positioned to capture the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and if Lawrence misses the rest of the year, you can more or less take that to the bank. Time to start scouting Colorado games, Giants fans.