That's your subjective opinion. The point is that the Giants' defense got noticeably better with the arrival of LT. Let's look at the record: Taylor was named first-team All-Pro in each of his first nine seasons. He was selected to play in 10 Pro Bowls and in 1994 was named to the NFLs 75th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Starting in Taylors first season, the Giants began a 10-season streak in which they made the playoffs six times and won two Super Bowls. This was quite an improvment over the previous ten years during the 1970s. LT was the difference maker in a team sport. Carson and Van Pelt became more productive because LT was attracting double and triple teams.
As far as players were concerned, I'd say the most important elements of those great Giants teams were not only the selection of Lawrence Taylor in 1981, but the emergence of a healthy Phil Simms in 1984, the development of Joe Morris as a legitimate top-tier NFL running back in 1985, and Young's ability to put together a great offensive line out of a group of unheralded draft picks and free agents from the USFL.
Starting in Taylors first season, the Giants began a 10-season streak in which they made the playoffs six times and won two Super Bowls.
You're right about that, but that's not a complete story. The Giants made the playoffs only once (1981) in Taylor's first three seasons. The team's rise to the top of the NFL began in 1984, and correlates almost precisely with the emergence of Bill Parcells as one of the best head coaches in the NFL. After the team went 3-12-1 in Parcells' first season at the helm, the Giants made the playoffs five times (and won two Super Bowls) in the next seven years -- the only two exceptions being the strike-shortened 1987 season and a 1988 season in which the team went 10-6 but failed to make the playoffs due to tiebreakers in a very strong NFC that included five 10-6 teams.
The team's decline after the 1990 Super Bowl season coincided with Parcells' departure from the team.