He played college football at Alabama A&M and was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

[1] Standing out in training camp and the preseason, the team announced he made the 53-man roster on September 3, 2016.

[2] In his NFL debut in Week 8, Lanier recovered a fumble forced by Chris Baker on Bengals' quarterback Andy Dalton.

[4] He would have a breakout performance in Week 15 against the Arizona Cardinals recording two sacks, three pass deflections, and a forced fumble.

[6] He went unclaimed in the waiver stage, and reverted to the team's injured reserve list before being waived with an injury settlement on September 8.