DeMarcus Lawrence doesn’t play games, especially four quarters against Giants

Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowl defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence didn’t mince his words.

Lawrence doesn’t expect to play the entire game when the Cowboys close out the regular season against the New York Giants at noon Sunday.

“You want me to play in the second half,” Lawrence asked reporters. The answer was no.

“Alright, were on the same page then,” he said.

But Lawrence will go hard while he’s on the field. He’s sitting at 9.5 sacks and has just one in the past four games. It came last week against the Bucs.

“If you want to be elite you got to have double digits every year,” said Lawrence, who had 14.5 sacks in 2017. “Got to go get it. How many pass rushers you call elite without double digits? The proof is in the pudding, so I got to leave my proof out there.”

He’ll need to do it in the first half, however, because Lawrence doesn’t expect to play more than that. He doesn’t want to either.

“Main thing is to stay healthy through this last game going into this playoff stretch healthy, focused and with that determination to take it all,” he said. “This is not a meaningless game. It’s a game for us to focus in on what we need to do in order to succeed in these playoffs.”

It might not be meaningless (even if technically it is) in terms of preparing for the playoffs with players and units working on specific areas that need improvement. But Lawrence acknowledges the bigger picture and importance of good health entering the playoffs, even if head coach Jason Garrett doesn’t do so publicly. The Cowboys (9-6) will host either the Seahawks or Vikings in the wild card round on Jan. 5 or 6. Sunday’s outcome won’t change anything.

“I’m not going to say I’m throwing my body out there all game. Absolutely not,” Lawrence said. “But I am going to be out there focusing on making plays and making sure my fundamentals are correct. Have some fun, play football with my guys and once coach calls me out, I’m out.”