Why Terry McLaurin's contract dispute with Washington is complicated and fascinating.
The two sides are standing firm. Is one being more reasonable (or unreasonable) than the other?
One of the biggest storylines of the NFL offseason has come from one of its most reserved, yet consistent and productive stars.
“Star” might actually be too aggressive of a word — at least within the walls of the Washington Commanders’ front office.
Terry McLaurin, the team’s longtime wide receiver, is in the midst of what’s turned into a back-and-forth contract dispute with the only franchise the seven-year veteran has ever played for. This iteration of the dispute, however, has gone more public and gained more national attention than his brief holdout in 2022 under similar circumstances.
He’s made it clear. He wants to stay in Washington. “I want to be here,” McLaurin told reporters earlier this month following a commercial shoot. “I want to make that abundantly clear.”
McLaurin, 29, is entering the final year of a three-year, $68 million extension he signed in 2022. That deal that puts him 17th in terms of average annual value (AAV) among all wide receivers, per OverTheCap.com.
His $23,200,000 salary for this season, on paper, isn’t anything to brush aside, given how the two-time Pro Bowl selection and 2024 second team All-Pro has performed since Washington took him in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft.
But consider this. 16 receivers, including new teammate Deebo Samuel, are set to make more money that McLaurin. Nine will receive at least $30,000,000 in 2025. Of those nine, just four — Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb, Vikings WR Justin Jefferson, Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase and Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown — made the Pro Bowl last season.
Those four players, along with McLaurin and Eagles WR A.J. Brown (who is also set to make $32,000,000 this season), were all selected as All-Pro performers.
McLaurin’s previous contract dispute came three years ago and briefly spilled into workouts and training camp. This year, however, is different. A new front office, regime and staff focused on advanced analytics might not completely work in McLaurin’s favor.
But there’s another important factor that works against McLaurin but in Washington’s favor. Not his accomplishments over the past six seasons. Not the five consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns he’s earned, nor the outstanding postseason numbers from 2024.
It’s age.
Not that 30 is old by any means, but McLaurin will hit that number on Sept. 15, four days after the Commanders’ Week 2, Thursday Night Football showdown in primetime against the Green Bay Packers.
30 in football years, however, is typically viewed as when a player’s trajectory starts to dwindle. Especially at the wide receiver and running back positions.
The tread starts to come off the tires, the countless hits to the body start to add up, the injury concerns become greater and a player’s late-20s peak turns into a decline.
Washington’s front office knows this, and more. Their information is endless. But here’s the case for McLaurin to receive a new contract, followed by counterpoints from the front office.
AGE
Yes, McLaurin will be 30 in September. But, it’s not your average 30. This season will be McLaurin’s seventh in the NFL, having been drafted by Washington as a 23-year old rookie in April 2019, turning 24 in September that year. In college, McLaurin was a redshirt during what would have been his true freshman season. He played in just six games as a redshirt freshman in 2015, and only had 11 receptions for 114 yards the following season. It wasn’t until his redshirt junior and senior seasons that he truly burst onto the scene, with 29 catches, 436 yards and 6 touchdowns and 35 catches for 701 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2017 and 2018, respectively. He’s a football player, so inevitably, there is wear and tear on his body. But, for comparison’s sake, take Dallas star WR CeeDee Lamb for example. He just turned 26 in April and was drafted in 2020 out of Oklahoma, one year after McLaurin. As a true freshman in 2017, he caught 46 passes for 807 yards, 65 for 1,158 yards the next season and 62 for 1,327 yards his junior year. Lamb had more catches (46) as a true freshman than McLaurin (35) has as a redshirt senior, statistically his best at Ohio State. His body of work, at least at the college level, far exceeds that of McLaurin, although the latter had more seasons of work than the former.CONSISTENCY
McLaurin has surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in each of the past five seasons. As a rookie, he finished with 919. All of this coming with 11 different quarterbacks. Last season, he caught a career-best 13 regular season touchdowns, along with three more in the postseason. Daniels, of course, played a big part in his star receiver having arguably his best season as a pro. And wouldn’t the Commanders want to keep the duo together?DURABILTY
Over his first six NFL seasons, McLaurin has played in 97 of a possible 100 career games. Two of those missed games came during his rookie year, the other due to a lingering high ankle sprain in 2020.TEAM-PLAYER
If there’s any player — specifically a wide receiver — who should ever display any sort of emotion, frustration, displeasure or animosity towards his team, coaches, Yellow Pages of quarterbacks or ownership, it should be McLaurin. But it’s been quite the opposite. He’s been nothing short of an exemplary team-first player, always crediting his locker room, gameplans, fans and family, even during trying moments. That’s why hearing his frustration over contract negotiations this summer as been so surprising. He’s only been to the postseason twice, had one winning record, two name changes, an ousted team owner, booing fans and four sub- .500 records, only to repeatedly reiterate his love for his adopted hometown, team and fanbase, representing himself and his team with unwavering respect.
So, what could the Commanders front office be thinking? Wouldn’t all of these be reasons to sign McLaurin to a big-money extension? Well, here are some countering factors.
AGE
Ah, here we go again. Tyreek Hill (31), Mike Evans (32 in August) are two of the most productive receivers at or over 30. Hill had 959 yards in his age 30 season in 2024. At age 30, Evans had 1,255 yards and 13 touchdowns, and 1,004 yards and 6 touchdowns at age 31. That’s not to say McLaurin can’t compete with those numbers this season or in subsequent years. The age cliff for elite skill players usually, in many eyes, begins at 30. Peters and Co. might not want to exceed the $30 million per year threshold for McLaurin if they don’t believe he’ll replicate his 2024 production, all while paying him top-of-the-market money.THE MARKET
Which has been reset more than a WIFI network on a farm in the Midwest. This offseason, Bengals receivers Ja’Marr Chase and and Tee Higgins signed big-money extensions with the team. Chase signed a record four-year, $161 million deal with $112 million guaranteed. Higgins inked a four-year, $115 million contract that’s guaranteed for the first two seasons. Jets receiver Garrett Wilson signed a four-year, $130 million extension in July. Those three deals average close to $34 million annually. The Commanders likely don’t view McLaurin as a $30 million-plus per year player at this stage of his career. Plus, all of these players are in their mid-20s.TEAM-FRIENDLY DEAL
The Commanders could offer McLaurin a shorter, more incentive-based deal. Say, three years, a base salary of $25 million per season (so $75 million total) with incentives to get the total deal to $90 million. These are just numbers and hypotheticals that would make sense for the Commanders in the long run. The question, of course, is whether McLaurin would agree to a deal such as this one. Adam Peters has said the team wants McLaurin to remain in Washington. Will they hold firm if McLaurin turns this one down?COURTLAND SUTTON
Wait… Courtland Sutton? The 29-year-old Broncos receiver is coming off a 1,000-yard season, leading the team in both receiving yards and touchdowns. He signed a four-year, $92 million extension with Denver this past Monday, which comes to an AAV of $23 million. So what does this have to do with McLaurin? Well, the Commanders could use Sutton’s contract as leverage in negotiations. They’re the same age, had similar production last season, and both players have now-second year quarterbacks who will, if they play up to rookie levels, reset the quarterback market in a couple years. The two should be mutually exclusive. But this is a business, and this is how business works.
Two things can be true. Overpaying McLaurin today might be a bargain in, say, two years. Not paying him what he wants, however, could lead to frustration within the locker room and distrust among players. It could also possibly hurt the team financially in the future.
There’s no textbook way to go about this. But here’s a glimmer of hope. When Peters was the San Francisco 49ers’ assistant general manager from 2021-2023, star DL Nick Bosa found himself in the midst of a contract dispute. Like McLaurin, he sat out all of training camp. Bosa even missed the entire preseason before signing a 5-year, $170 million extension just days before the team’s Week 1 opener.
Different franchise, sure. Different position with a player at a different stage of his career, sure. Could it be the the deal will just be done late?
Since becoming Washington’s general manager in Jan. 2024, fans have often chanted or typed “In AP we trust,” signaling their belief in Peters to properly execute deals and create rosters that deliver on the field.
But as McLaurin walked off the practice field earlier this week flanked by reporters, he uttered six words that have seemingly echoed across the DMV, the Commanders facility and through a fanbase that can’t help but repeat the words of their beloved star.
“Just taking it day by day,” McLaurin said twice.
Maybe he is a star.
Maybe that day will come soon.