Getty Dallas Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Lawrence celebrates after a play.
The Dallas Cowboys are now 2-1 after a big win over the New York Giants, with Demarcus Lawrence taking the time to “clap back” at LeBron James.
After a 19-3 loss to open the season, Dallas has bounced back with two consecutive wins over the Cincinnati Bengals and the Giants. Lawrence played a significant role in both victories, but exploded into last night’s game.
So, when the 23-16 contest was done and dusted, the Dallas defensive end went online to celebrate the win. Evidently, the 30-year-old did not like James’ support for Giants running back Saquon Barkley during the game, with the Los Angeles Lakers forward saying, “Saquon is back.”
Lawrence’s response was just one letter: “L.”
Obviously, there’s no bad blood between Lawrence and James, the Cowboys edge rusher just needed to get his joke off. NFC East rivalries are as real as they get, so any love for the Giants is not something Dallas players ought to enjoy.
Granted, LeBron did have praise for Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb during the game as well, showing love after Lamb’s late-game touchdown catch.
“OMG CEEDEE !!!!!!!!! WOW,” James posted later in the game.
This catch deserves another look 🔥 @_CeeDeeThree
Lawrence and Barkley Explode for Big Games
While the Cowboys walked away happiest with a win, the Giants can at least know that Barkley is in fact looking like his old self. The 25-year-old running back has had a strong start to the season and added onto it last night.
Barkley took 14 handoffs for 81 yards and a touchdown, including a 36-yard touchdown rush that put the Giants up 13-6 in the second half.
However, Dallas will accept those numbers considering how strong their pass defense was. New York QB Daniel Jones totaled just 196 yards with zero touchdowns, as the Cowboys’ pressure made his night difficult.
Along with sacks from Donovan Wilson and Dorance Armstrong, Lawrence brought down Jones three different times in what was probably his best performance in years. After missing out on sacks in the first two games of the season, D-Law brought up his stats in a big way on Monday night.
Cowboys Legend Stirred Up Giants Before Game
Heavy previously covered that former Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman criticized the state of the Giants franchise. Aikman was on color commentary for Monday Night Football on September 26.
The three-time Super Bowl champ was not convinced by the Giants undefeated start before their Cowboys’ loss, per the Dallas Morning News
“I’ve seen a team that’s pretty fortunate to be 2-0,” Aikman explained. “Defensively — I don’t want to say they’re like the Cowboys, because I do believe the Cowboys overall are a far better team than what I’ve seen of the Giants. Offensively, they’re just struggling. I think the offensive line’s a work in progress — the whole team is, I guess, for that matter… And it’s pretty amazing just how far the Giants have fallen.”
Those are harsh words for a team that started 2-0, but they did not necessarily prove Aikman wrong by losing to their NFC East rivals in the Cowboys. Now, both teams sit at 2-1 with contrasting momentum.