The New York Giants were lambasted for their supposed mismanagement of the first round of this year’s NFL Draft. They were heavily criticized for taking Duke quarterback Daniel Jones No. 6 overall and Clemson defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence at No. 17. Then, they traded up to select cornerback Deandre Baker of Georgia at No. 30.

Jones has been hot-and-cold but is on his way to proving he was worth the high selection, and Baker has calmed down after a rough start to his NFL career.

Lawrence seems to get more impressive every week. Many experts who did not believe was worthy of the 17th overall selection in the draft are changing their tune about him.

I had rated Lawrence (6-4, 345 pounds) as a second-round talent, and since then, I’ve upgraded my opinion of him. It’s only been six games, but Lawrence has turned heads.

Giants rookie DT Dexter Lawrence is the top-graded rookie defensive lineman this season. Has the No. 8 grade among all interior defensive linemen. Powerful and disruptive in the run game to go with 13 pressures through six weeks.https://t.co/fkAEILIFuR — Steve Palazzolo (@PFF_Steve) October 15, 2019

But the narrative wasn’t always this positive. There were some who panned the choice of Lawrence as the Giants just backfilling the role that was left vacant by the trade of Damon Harrison to Detroit a year ago.

Steven Ruiz of USA TODAY’s For The Win graded the selection of Lawrence with an “F”:

I mean, I guess this pick is on-brand for Dave Gettleman, who seems to be obsessed with building a team that can win the NFC East in 1993. Dexter Lawrence is a good player, but he’s a run-stuffer (a very good one) and that just isn’t a valuable skill. Look at it this way: The Giants traded Damon Harrison, the best run defender in the NFL, for a fifth-round pick. Then, essentially, traded Odell Beckham for a player they hope will turn into Harrison one day.

Wow, very harsh criticism there from Ruiz. Wonder what he’s saying now that Lawrence has taken the field and is basically pushing seasoned NFL offensive linemen around like high schoolers.

Here’s what ESPN’s Jordan Raanan had to say about the pick:

Lawrence is an interior lineman better known for his run-stuffing ability than pass-rush skills. I’m not sure that is what the Giants needed most with the premium pick obtained in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade. A pass-rusher would have been ideal. Brian Burns, whom they were high on, went one pick earlier. That hurt. … Lawrence had 6.5 sacks as a freshman and only 3.5 sacks his final two seasons. He said part of that can be attributed to a leg injury that affected him for the better part of a year until midway through last season. The Giants are gambling that he is more of the player he was as a freshman than the previous two seasons.

Spot on. If Burns, who was taken by Carolina, had been there at No. 17, he would have been hard to pass up. Gettleman was adamant that Lawrence would make a difference in the pass rush by collapsing the pocket, which we are starting to see.

“I think he’s been pretty disruptive in there, actually,” Giants coach Pat Shurmur said of Lawrence. “Even though he’s not getting sacks, the pressures and just the sheer size of that man when he gets going. … I’m encouraged by the improvements he’s making out here, too. I think the better and better he gets in our system, the more he’ll have an impact in the games.”

Lawrence is only going to get better from here.