EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Dexter Lawrence set out to quiet the chatter minutes after the first practice of New York Giants training camp. The veteran defensive tackle had already challenged his fellow players not to listen to the outside noise.
“They want to talk about our D-line and all this,” Lawrence said, “but we haven’t done anything yet.”
Linebacker Brian Burns shared the same thought process a few days later, with a little more profanity tossed in, acknowledging what the formidable front looks like on paper. And while adding No. 3 overall pick Abdul Carter to a group already featuring Lawrence, Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux has the potential to make this an elite pass rush, those involved are quick to insist they need to prove it first.
"Everything looks good with the names that we have and the potential and this and that," Burns said. “It’s all on us. We can take this as far as we want to go.”
Teammate Darius Muasau called it “the best D-line in the NFL right now," which is lofty praise that can get tossed out there in the dog days of summer with camps in full swing and before any meaningful games are played. Even the exhibition season might not be an indication of what the unit can do.
That will get tested in September with the gauntlet of opening at NFC East rivals Washington and Dallas and at home against defending AFC champion Kansas City, followed by then Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. Coach Brian Daboll, among many others, is looking forward to seeing how Lawrence, free agent signing Roy Robertson-Harris, Thibodeaux, Burns and Carter handle hefty expectations.
“Hype doesn’t get you anywhere,” Daboll said this week. “Action does. So, whatever people think or they say, good or bad, the only thing that really matters is how we go about our business and ultimately producing when it matters.”
Even tying for the worst record in the league last season at 3-14 — the 30th-ranked offense shouldered a bigger slice of that blame — only seven teams had more sacks than the Giants' 45.
Lawrence set a career high with nine, Burns was next with 8 1/2 and Thibodeaux figures he should have had more than 5 1/2 with so many half-sacks part of his total.
“Probably would’ve been, you guys can do the math, maybe seven or eight if I were to finish those,” Thibodeaux said. “Just making sure that I get everything I deserve this year.”
Burns noticed a positive change in Thibodeaux at some point last season, which has continued into camp. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen said Wednesday he routinely shows clips of the 2022 No. 5 pick running to the ball as an example to other players.
“K.T. has impressed me about how he handles himself in the building,” Burns said. “He gets in early (and) he does his thing. All in all, he flipped that switch last year, so I expect big things from K.T."
The organization — and bettors — expect big things from Carter, too. He's a heavy favorite at less than 3-1 on BetMGM Sportsbook to be AP Defensive Rookie of the Year after 12 sacks in 16 games in his final college season at Penn State, during which he also led the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision in tackles for loss.
“He’s going to be put in positions to succeed, and that’s just due to the guys we have on the line,” Burns said. “Me, Dex, K.T., he’s going to have 1 on 1s. He’s going to have opportunities to show what he can do.”
Bowen, going into his second season running New York's defense, is putting the onus on himself and his staff to find ways to get impact players on the field in the correct situations. That might mean Burns, Thibodeaux and Carter all lining up on an obvious passing down to show what they all can do.
“We’ve got to make sure we do a good job of finding ways to utilize them,” Bowen said. “To have three guys that can roll and play and do different things for us, it really opens up the creativity for us."
After not participating in all of team drills at practice Wednesday, top receiver Malik Nabers said he was fine and called it part of the plan devised by coaches and trainers.
Asked if it was about managing his lingering toe injury, the second-year pro said it was about everything. It's unclear how much, if any, Nabers will play in the preseason opener Saturday at Buffalo.
With standout left tackle Andrew Thomas still on the physically unable to perform list and rehabbing to return from surgery in October for a Lisfranc injury in his right foot, James Hudson has been filling in that spot with the first-team offense. That is, until midway through practice Wednesday.
Hudson left the field with training staff and did not return. Rookie Marcus Mbow, a fifth-round pick out of Purdue, took over in Hudson's absence.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
New York Giants linebacker Abdul Carter (51) runs drills during Back Together Weekend at the team's NFL football training camp, Sunday, July 27, 2025, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department has released tens of thousands more documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a tranche that included multiple mentions of President Donald Trump but added little new revelatory information to the long-anticipated public file on the late financier and convicted sex offender.
The release is the most voluminous so far and comes after a massive public campaign for transparency into the U.S. government’s Epstein investigations.
Many of the mentions of Trump in the file came from news clippings, though it includes an email from a prosecutor pointing out the flights that Trump took on Epstein’s private jet during the 1990s.
The two men were friends for years before a falling out. Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein. The Justice Department issued a statement that some documents contain “untrue and sensationalist claims” about Trump made shortly before the 2020 election.
Here are some takeaways:
Among the mentions of Trump in the latest batch of the Epstein files is a note from a federal prosecutor from January 2020 that said Trump had flown on the financier’s private plane more often than had been previously known.
An assistant U.S. attorney from the Southern District of New York said in an email that flight records the office received on Jan. 6, 2020, showed that Trump was on Epstein’s jet “many more times than previously has been reported (or that we were aware).”
The prosecutor who flagged the Trump mentions in the flight logs said they did so because lawyers “didn’t want any of this to be a surprise down the road.”
His travels on Epstein’s plane spanned the time that would likely be covered in any criminal charges against Epstein’s co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell. Trump was listed as a passenger on at least eight flights between 1993 and 1996, and on at least four of those flights, Maxwell was also there, according to the email.
On one of those eight flights, in 1993, Trump and Epstein were the only two passengers listed in the flight logs. On another flight, the three passengers listed in records are Epstein, Trump, and a redacted individual, who was 20 years old at the time. Two other flights included two women -- whose names were redacted in follow-up emails — identified as potential witnesses in a Maxwell case.
Several additional Trump trips on Epstein’s plane had been previously disclosed during Maxwell’s criminal proceedings.
Asked for comment about the email, the White House pointed to a Justice Department statement saying Monday’s release contained “unfounded and false” claims against the president submitted to the FBI shortly before the 2020 election, but they were nevertheless being released for full transparency.
The Justice Department specifically raised questions about the validity of a document mentioning Trump that was styled as a letter from Epstein to Larry Nassar, the sports doctor convicted of sexually abusing Olympic athletes. The department pointed out that it was processed three days after Epstein's death.
Trump complained that the files were a distraction from the work he and other Republicans are doing for the country.
Speaking during an unrelated event at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, the president blamed Democrats and some Republicans for the controversy.
“What this whole thing is with Epstein is a way of trying to deflect from the tremendous success that the Republican Party has,” Trump said.
He also expressed frustration about the famous people shown with Epstein in photos released by the Justice Department — people who he said may not have known him but ended up in the shot anyway.
“You probably have pictures being exposed of other people that innocently met Jeffrey Epstein years ago, many years ago. And they’re, you know, highly respected bankers and lawyers and others,” Trump said.
Well-known people shown in the files include former President Bill Clinton, the late pop star Michael Jackson and singer Diana Ross. The mere inclusion of someone’s name or images in files from the investigation does not imply wrongdoing.
The latest release also includes files that put the U.K.'s former Prince Andrew back in the headlines.
Among those documents is correspondence between Maxwell and someone who signs off with the initial “A.”
The email exchange includes other references that suggest Maxwell’s correspondent may be Andrew. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The August 2001 email from someone identified only as “The Invisible Man,” said he is “up here at Balmoral Summer Camp for the Royal Family,” an apparent reference to the Scottish estate where the royal family have traditionally taken their late summer holidays.
“A” writes: “How’s LA? Have you found me some new inappropriate friends?”
The writer says he has left “the RN” and refers to the challenges of looking after “the Girls.” Andrew retired from the Royal Navy in 2001 and has two daughters.
Andrew, one of King Charles III’s younger brothers, was stripped of the right to be called a prince and his other royal titles and honors in October, amid continued publicity about his links to Epstein and concerns about the potential damage to the rest of the royal family. He is now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Andrew has repeatedly denied committing any crimes, including having sex with Virginia Giuffre, who alleged that she was trafficked by Epstein and had sex with Andrew when she was 17.
Trump tried for months to keep the records sealed before relenting to political pressure, including from some fellow Republicans, though he eventually signed a bill mandating the release of most of the Justice Department’s files on Epstein.
Monday's release was the biggest dump yet, including nearly 30,000 more pages. The data released by the law's Friday deadline contained a fraction of that amount, mostly photographs taken during FBI searches of Epstein’s homes.
The new cache includes news clippings, emails and surveillance videos from the New York jail where Epstein was held before taking his own life in 2019, much of which was already in the public domain.
The law called for the files to be released within 30 days, but the Justice Department has instead released them in stages starting Friday. Officials have said they’re going slowly to protect victims, though some women assaulted by Epstein have spoken out publicly to call for greater transparency.
Associated Press writer Darlene Superville in Washington and Danica Kirka in London contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
