Carl Lawson, a former defensive end for the New York Jets, is joining the Dallas Cowboys, an ESPN source revealed on Thursday.
Lawson joins the Cowboys as their second defensive line addition in as many days after they acquired defensive tackle Jordan Phillips on Wednesday via a trade with the New York Giants.
After the Cowboys lost pass rusher Sam Williams to an ACL tear during an early training camp exercise, Lawson worked out for the team in Oxnard, California. However, Dallas signed Shaka Toney and Al-Quadin Muhammad instead. Since then, Toney has been sidelined or hurt in the groin.
When Lawson, then 29 years old, signed a three-year, $45 million contract in free agency in 2021, the Jets celebrated his arrival as a huge addition. However, he failed to live up to the hype and ended up appearing in just 23 games over the course of three seasons.
He had an Achilles tendon rupture during a Green Bay Packers preseason workout, which caused him to miss the 2021 season. A few months later, Lawson had another surgery to treat the injuries, but he returned in time for the 2022 season and played every minute, recording seven sacks.
The campaign for 2023 was a disaster. Due to a back ailment, Lawson missed the majority of the preseason and was replaced as the starting defensive end by Jermaine Johnson in his sophomore season. Lawson was left off the defensive line rotation by the time he was well enough to play, which left him on spot duty and frustrated.
Late in the season, he turned off inquiries from the media and was a healthy scratch for 11 games.
At midway, he declared, “I am a football player, not a cheerleader.” Lawson played just 101 snaps, saw action in just six games, and recorded five tackles and zero sacks.
During his four years (20 sacks) with the Cincinnati Bengals, Lawson was considered a competent pass rusher, but he had trouble staying on the field. He was out of action for 13 of the 64 games, primarily due to knee surgery in 2018.
He began his career in Cincinnati as a player under Cowboys run game coordinator Paul Guenther.
