The Washington Commanders are playing a dangerous game when it comes to negotiating Terry McLaurin’s contract extension. It should be a no-brainer that he deserves whatever dollar amount he’s requesting. He’s shown how good of a weapon he can be, but the 2024 season isn’t nearly as successful as it was if Jayden Daniels doesn’t have a weapon like McLaurin.
The Commanders better tread very carefully when it comes to pushing McLaurin away. There’s a fine line between getting a feel for the market and just completely shunning him. The fact that talks have been minimal between the two sides means they’re gearing up for a frustrating start to an optimistic season.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that McLaurin originally showed up to voluntary OTAs, but unexpectedly left with his attendance for mandatory camp up in the air.
Sources: #Commanders All-Pro WR Terry McLaurin has made it clear to the team that he’s frustrated with the lack of progress on a long-term deal. As I previously reported, McLaurin unexpectedly left voluntary workouts after initially attending, and it remains to be seen whether… pic.twitter.com/5lUXbe8dxe
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) June 5, 2025
Terry McLaurin absent from voluntary OTAs is a sign his contract negotiations are about to become a distraction
This is not uncommon for players to hold out during camp season for a new contract. The problem is, the Commanders should be capitalizing on this roster and winning, and not playing games with their star players.
They have a lot of cap space to work with so not locking down their top receiver simply doesn’t make sense. Surely, they don’t think Deebo Samuel will be an ideal replacement for him either. Jayden Daniels has four years before he gets his pay day, why the Commanders would wait to extend McLaurin is foolish.
Look at the Cincinnati Bengals, they knew the importance of bringing both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins back and they both returned without having to worry about holding out. McLaurin is already showing he is not coming back until he’s happy. The Commanders shouldn’t overthink this one.
McLaurin had his fifth-straight 1,000 receiving-yard season and a career high 13 receiving touchdowns. He was a red zone threat as well as a deep ball threat and the perfect player for Daniels to play with. If you take into account the turnover from the receiver room this past season, do they really want to risk not having McLaurin for Week 1 because of something that should be obvious?
I’m not sure what Washington’s play is here. The top teams in the NFL don’t get to where they are without an elite receiver. Kansas City and Buffalo might be anomalies in this situation, but they also have MVP winning quarterbacks.
The Commanders don’t – yet. So they should be doing everything they can to keep their best players around to remain contenders in the NFC East and the conference. Championship windows don’t stay open for long and the Commanders are going to find that out the hard way if McLaurin’s rumored holdout carries into the regular season.