Jordan RaananMay 5, 2026, 03:02 PM ETCloseJordan Raanan covers the New York Giants for ESPN and can be heard hosting on ESPN Radio. Raanan joined ESPN in 2016.Follow on XMultiple Authors
What impact will DJ Reader have on the Giants? (0:45)Jordan Raanan breaks down how DJ Reader will help the Giants’ run defense. (0:45)
The New York Giants have agreed to a two-year, $12.5 million contract sign veteran defensive tackle DJ Reader, a source told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler on Tuesday.
The move comes more than two weeks after the Giants traded standout defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence II to the Cincinnati Bengals for the 10th overall pick in the NFL draft. New York also drafted Bobby Jamison-Travis in the sixth round last month.
Last week, the Giants also signed veteran defensive tackles Shelby Harris and Leki Fotu to one-year contracts. The Giants also claimed defensive tackle Zacch Pickens off waivers from the Kansas City Chiefs on Tuesday.
Reader, 31, spent the past two seasons with the Detroit Lions. He previously played for the Bengals and Houston Texans.
Reader led the NFL last year with a 71.7% double-team rate. He had 28 tackles, nine pressures and four quarterback hits. His 26.0% run stop win rate was below league average and behind Lawrence (31.5%).
New York had Reader, Harris and Benito Jones visit in recent weeks. Reader also visited the Baltimore Ravens last month.
Lawrence started last season between Roy Robertson-Harris and Rakeem Nunez-Roches. Nunez-Roches was a free agent and signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Giants plan for second-year defensive lineman Darius Alexander to play a bigger role but still needed to add to the line. In particular, they were searching for a big run-stuffing nose tackle to anchor their run defense.
John Harbaugh was hired as the Giants’ head coach earlier this year. He brought Dennard Wilson with him as his defensive coordinator. Wilson’s defense is expected to be similar to what they ran in year under Harbaugh in Baltimore, with a sturdy nose tackle as a key component to the run defense.
Reader (6-foot-3, 330) fits the description. He has played in 137 career games with 128 starts and has 328 tackles and 12.5 sacks in 10 professional seasons with the Houston Texans, Cincinnati Bengals and Lions.
What impact will DJ Reader have on the Giants? (0:45)Jordan Raanan breaks down how DJ Reader will help the Giants’ run defense. (0:45)
Jordan RaananMay 5, 2026, 03:02 PM ETCloseJordan Raanan covers the New York Giants for ESPN and can be heard hosting on ESPN Radio. Raanan joined ESPN in 2016.Follow on XMultiple Authors
CloseJordan Raanan covers the New York Giants for ESPN and can be heard hosting on ESPN Radio. Raanan joined ESPN in 2016.Follow on X
Reader can make up to $15.5 million through incentives, the source told Fowler.
The Giants freed up more than $12.5 million in salary cap space by trading Lawrence.
The Giants said after the draft the defensive tackle position was a priority.
Jordan Raanan breaks down how DJ Reader will help the Giants’ run defense. (0:45)