August 26, 2025 • 13 mins
The conversation delves into Terry McLaurin's recent contract with the Washington Commanders, analyzing its implications for both the player and the team. It discusses McLaurin's performance statistics, the negotiations surrounding his contract, and the importance of his role in supporting rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. The discussion highlights the dynamics of player contracts in the NFL, the expectations placed on McLaurin, and the strategic decisions made by the Commanders to enhance their competitiveness in the league.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
The Washington Commanders signed Terry McLaurin to a three year,
ninety six million dollars deal which ends his hold in
and now the Commanders are ready to attack Week one
of the NFL season with their full roster.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
In less than two weeks, Scary Terry is.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Back and the Commanders are now a legitimate threat in
their division with the Eagles, Cowboys, and Giants once again.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
So let's talk about it. Let's break it down. McLaurin,
Scary Terry.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
There are questions about him because the reason why this
deal took so long to get done is because he
is thirty years old and he will be thirty one
years old on September fifteenth, which is an older age
for a receiver to perform at a high level.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
And to give him thirty two million.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Dollars a year with a thirty million dollars signing bonus
is asking a lot of a receiver because now you
expect him, as he's aging, to live up to this
thirty two million dollars a year wide receiver, which right
(01:35):
now would average about seventh among wide receivers in the NFL.
But you take a look at McLaurin statistics, Scary Terry
stats and he is the definition of wide receiver consistency.
In twenty twenty one one thousand and fifty three yards,
(01:58):
five touchdowns, seventy seven kit twenty twenty two one ninety
one yards, five touchdowns, seventy seven catches, twenty twenty three
one thousand two yards, four touchdowns, seventy nine catches, and
twenty twenty four one ninety six yards, thirteen touchdowns and
(02:21):
eighty two catches. So in Terry mclaurin's eyes, he said,
I had thirteen touchdowns last year. I had double touchdowns,
one of the highest in the league, which means that
I should get more money based on the production and
(02:42):
the success of our team last year. But the way
that I see it and the way that the commanders
see it is the thirteen touchdown year from Terry McLaurin
was an outlier. And the reason why is you look
(03:03):
at his three previous seasons before. His thirteen touchdowns in
twenty twenty four was one less than his tally over
his three previous seasons combined in twenty twenty three, twenty two,
and twenty twenty one, Terry McLaurin had a combined of
(03:26):
fourteen touchdowns and he almost mashed that in twenty twenty four.
So in reality, mcclaurin isn't going to score thirteen touchdowns
again in twenty twenty five. That number is gonna fall
back to the median. He's not gonna get double digit
(03:46):
touchdowns this season. So from the commander's side, they're trying
to make these arguments to get that contract down a
little bit, saying, hey, you had a great year last year.
He had over one thousand yards, but you aren't Justin
Jefferson or Jamar Chase who put up fifteen hundred to
sixteen hundred yards a season. Because let's be honest about it,
(04:08):
Terry McLaurin, as phenomenal as his twenty twenty four season was,
he is not the top echelon wide receiver in the league.
And that's why the Commanders felt like they could pay
him a little less, and that's why the holdout went
(04:28):
down in the first place.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
And McLaurin.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
Wants top wide receiver money because of his year in
twenty twenty four, but he is not as elite as
those other guys. He had one thousand yards for four
straight years. The best receivers in the league are putting
up fifteen hundred and sixteen hundred, seventeen hundred yards eighteen
(04:55):
hundred yard seasons. And the way that I look at
this deal is McLaurin and Jaden Daniels need each other.
It's like Batman and Alfred. Jaden Daniels is Batman and
(05:18):
Alfred is.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Terry McLaurin.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Because there's no question that Jaden McDaniels is the MVP
of the Washington Commander's roster, and based off what he
did his rookie season, people are already putting Jaden Daniels
(05:46):
in the top five quarterback spotlight because the first three
qbs and the.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
League are easy.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
You've got Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow three, easy pick.
He could go either direction with who's won two or three?
But then he get to four, Lamar Jackson probably, and
then he get to five, and then it gets a
little murkier.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Who's five?
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Is that Jaden Daniels, Is it Jalen Hurts, is it
Jared Goff? Is that Matthew stept Five is the debatable
quarterback and some people have already put Jaden Daniels in
that mix. And here's why Terry McLaurin is so important
(06:33):
for Jaden McDaniels and the Commanders, And here's why the
deal makes sense from both parties. One, Jaden Daniels had
one of the best rookie quarterback seasons we've seen in
a long time. And when you have a phenomenal season
like he did, what's everybody looking for.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
In year two? Is he going to regress?
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Is he going to live up to the hype that
he created in Your One? And if Jadeen Daniels wants
to live up to the height that he produced in
Your one, that he created in Your One, he needs
Terry McLaurin on the field, and so do the Commanders.
If the Commanders want to get over the hurdle they
(07:23):
beat the Lions last year, but if they want to
get over the hurdle of beating the Eagles in that
phenomenal defense, they need their entire roster to do it,
because the Eagles have a juggernaut of a defense. And
to have jade and Daniels without Terry McLaurin is to
(07:46):
have Batman without Alfred. Alfred's the one that told Batman
where to go. He served the guy and Terry McLaurin
is the servant of and Daniels. Jada Daniels throws the ball,
Terry McLaurin catches the ball. And to look at this
(08:11):
deal objectively, yeah, it's thirty two million dollars a year.
He's getting older, will be thirty three years old in
a couple of years, and that's old to pay a
guy thirty two million dollars a year. But here's why
the deal is fair for both sides. The Commanders did
not give him Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase money, but
(08:38):
they gave him a good deal. They gave him that
second tier wide receiver money. And what happens every single
year is the NFL cap goes up every year because
of the revenues the NFL brings in.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
So because the NFL cap.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Goes up every year, when Terry McLaurin is thirty three
years old, this deal is not going to look as
expensive as it does now because they'll have more cap
space than they did this past season. So when you
combine the fact that the Commanders need Scary Terry to
(09:23):
catch passes from Jaden Daniels to avoid that regression, and
the fact that the cap space is just going to
go up as these years continue. This is the perfect
deal for Terry McLaurin and the Washington commanders. The only
(09:45):
mistake that McLaurin made throughout this whole situation was this,
It says according to ESPN, McLaurin did not report to
camp week later and was fined for missing the first
four days, a total of two hundred thousand dollars. He
(10:07):
already had been fined one hundred and four thousand for
missing the mandatory three day mini camp in June. Sure,
three hundred thousand dollars might be nothing, but it's certainly something.
And he eventually reported and did his whole hold in thing.
(10:29):
But why didn't you hold in to begin with and
avoid the two hundred thousand dollars fine? Why didn't you
hold in during mandatory minigamp, show up, fake an injury,
avoid getting fined, keep all your money?
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And he still looked like the good guy.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Nobody criticizes a player for holding in because it at
least shows some camaraderie, some some.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Law for his teammates and the organization.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
But when a player hauls out and is skipping practices
and skipping this and skipping that, it paints that player
in a bad light, and eventually he showed up because
someone got into his ear and said, you need to
at least show up and just hold in fake an
injury until you get your contract settled, and that's what
(11:24):
he did. So he eventually made the right decision, but
it took him a little while to get there.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
So this is one of those instances where it really
is a perfect deal for.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Terry McLaurin and the Washington Commanders because it elevates the
Commander's team to be a legitimate threat in their division
with the Super Bowl winning champions, and it all elevates
Jade and Daniels. Because everybody is looking for the regression.
(12:04):
Is he going to be the same players he can produce,
Because as much as we all love Jade and Daniels,
I think there's a little side of NFL fans that
hopes Jade and Daniels struggles a little bit to see
the regression, to see the drama unfold.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
So to have Terry McLaurin back is a big deal.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Because Jade and Daniels also this, He's not surprising teams
this year. Everybody's ready for him. There's no shock factor
with Jade and Daniels. So he needs to be his
best version of himself and that best version of himself
includes Terry McLaurin and the commanders know that, and the
Commander's got the deal done. Great deal for both sides.
(12:55):
Thanks for watching the show today.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
This is The Grind, a sports podcast. All have a
wonderful day.
The Washington Commanders signed Terry McLaurin to a three year,
ninety six million dollars deal which ends his hold in
and now the Commanders are ready to attack Week one
of the NFL season with their full roster.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
In less than two weeks, Scary Terry is.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Back and the Commanders are now a legitimate threat in
their division with the Eagles, Cowboys, and Giants once again.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
So let's talk about it. Let's break it down. McLaurin,
Scary Terry.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
There are questions about him because the reason why this
deal took so long to get done is because he
is thirty years old and he will be thirty one
years old on September fifteenth, which is an older age
for a receiver to perform at a high level.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
And to give him thirty two million.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Dollars a year with a thirty million dollars signing bonus
is asking a lot of a receiver because now you
expect him, as he's aging, to live up to this
thirty two million dollars a year wide receiver, which right
(01:35):
now would average about seventh among wide receivers in the NFL.
But you take a look at McLaurin statistics, Scary Terry
stats and he is the definition of wide receiver consistency.
In twenty twenty one one thousand and fifty three yards,
(01:58):
five touchdowns, seventy seven kit twenty twenty two one ninety
one yards, five touchdowns, seventy seven catches, twenty twenty three
one thousand two yards, four touchdowns, seventy nine catches, and
twenty twenty four one ninety six yards, thirteen touchdowns and
(02:21):
eighty two catches. So in Terry mclaurin's eyes, he said,
I had thirteen touchdowns last year. I had double touchdowns,
one of the highest in the league, which means that
I should get more money based on the production and
(02:42):
the success of our team last year. But the way
that I see it and the way that the commanders
see it is the thirteen touchdown year from Terry McLaurin
was an outlier. And the reason why is you look
(03:03):
at his three previous seasons before. His thirteen touchdowns in
twenty twenty four was one less than his tally over
his three previous seasons combined in twenty twenty three, twenty two,
and twenty twenty one, Terry McLaurin had a combined of
(03:26):
fourteen touchdowns and he almost mashed that in twenty twenty four.
So in reality, mcclaurin isn't going to score thirteen touchdowns
again in twenty twenty five. That number is gonna fall
back to the median. He's not gonna get double digit
(03:46):
touchdowns this season. So from the commander's side, they're trying
to make these arguments to get that contract down a
little bit, saying, hey, you had a great year last year.
He had over one thousand yards, but you aren't Justin
Jefferson or Jamar Chase who put up fifteen hundred to
sixteen hundred yards a season. Because let's be honest about it,
(04:08):
Terry McLaurin, as phenomenal as his twenty twenty four season was,
he is not the top echelon wide receiver in the league.
And that's why the Commanders felt like they could pay
him a little less, and that's why the holdout went
(04:28):
down in the first place.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
And McLaurin.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
Wants top wide receiver money because of his year in
twenty twenty four, but he is not as elite as
those other guys. He had one thousand yards for four
straight years. The best receivers in the league are putting
up fifteen hundred and sixteen hundred, seventeen hundred yards eighteen
(04:55):
hundred yard seasons. And the way that I look at
this deal is McLaurin and Jaden Daniels need each other.
It's like Batman and Alfred. Jaden Daniels is Batman and
(05:18):
Alfred is.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Terry McLaurin.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Because there's no question that Jaden McDaniels is the MVP
of the Washington Commander's roster, and based off what he
did his rookie season, people are already putting Jaden Daniels
(05:46):
in the top five quarterback spotlight because the first three
qbs and the.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
League are easy.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
You've got Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow three, easy pick.
He could go either direction with who's won two or three?
But then he get to four, Lamar Jackson probably, and
then he get to five, and then it gets a
little murkier.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Who's five?
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Is that Jaden Daniels, Is it Jalen Hurts, is it
Jared Goff? Is that Matthew stept Five is the debatable
quarterback and some people have already put Jaden Daniels in
that mix. And here's why Terry McLaurin is so important
(06:33):
for Jaden McDaniels and the Commanders, And here's why the
deal makes sense from both parties. One, Jaden Daniels had
one of the best rookie quarterback seasons we've seen in
a long time. And when you have a phenomenal season
like he did, what's everybody looking for.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
In year two? Is he going to regress?
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Is he going to live up to the hype that
he created in Your One? And if Jadeen Daniels wants
to live up to the height that he produced in
Your one, that he created in Your One, he needs
Terry McLaurin on the field, and so do the Commanders.
If the Commanders want to get over the hurdle they
(07:23):
beat the Lions last year, but if they want to
get over the hurdle of beating the Eagles in that
phenomenal defense, they need their entire roster to do it,
because the Eagles have a juggernaut of a defense. And
to have jade and Daniels without Terry McLaurin is to
(07:46):
have Batman without Alfred. Alfred's the one that told Batman
where to go. He served the guy and Terry McLaurin
is the servant of and Daniels. Jada Daniels throws the ball,
Terry McLaurin catches the ball. And to look at this
(08:11):
deal objectively, yeah, it's thirty two million dollars a year.
He's getting older, will be thirty three years old in
a couple of years, and that's old to pay a
guy thirty two million dollars a year. But here's why
the deal is fair for both sides. The Commanders did
not give him Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase money, but
(08:38):
they gave him a good deal. They gave him that
second tier wide receiver money. And what happens every single
year is the NFL cap goes up every year because
of the revenues the NFL brings in.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
So because the NFL cap.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Goes up every year, when Terry McLaurin is thirty three
years old, this deal is not going to look as
expensive as it does now because they'll have more cap
space than they did this past season. So when you
combine the fact that the Commanders need Scary Terry to
(09:23):
catch passes from Jaden Daniels to avoid that regression, and
the fact that the cap space is just going to
go up as these years continue. This is the perfect
deal for Terry McLaurin and the Washington commanders. The only
(09:45):
mistake that McLaurin made throughout this whole situation was this,
It says according to ESPN, McLaurin did not report to
camp week later and was fined for missing the first
four days, a total of two hundred thousand dollars. He
(10:07):
already had been fined one hundred and four thousand for
missing the mandatory three day mini camp in June. Sure,
three hundred thousand dollars might be nothing, but it's certainly something.
And he eventually reported and did his whole hold in thing.
(10:29):
But why didn't you hold in to begin with and
avoid the two hundred thousand dollars fine? Why didn't you
hold in during mandatory minigamp, show up, fake an injury,
avoid getting fined, keep all your money?
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And he still looked like the good guy.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Nobody criticizes a player for holding in because it at
least shows some camaraderie, some some.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Law for his teammates and the organization.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
But when a player hauls out and is skipping practices
and skipping this and skipping that, it paints that player
in a bad light, and eventually he showed up because
someone got into his ear and said, you need to
at least show up and just hold in fake an
injury until you get your contract settled, and that's what
(11:24):
he did. So he eventually made the right decision, but
it took him a little while to get there.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
So this is one of those instances where it really
is a perfect deal for.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Terry McLaurin and the Washington Commanders because it elevates the
Commander's team to be a legitimate threat in their division
with the Super Bowl winning champions, and it all elevates
Jade and Daniels. Because everybody is looking for the regression.
(12:04):
Is he going to be the same players he can produce,
Because as much as we all love Jade and Daniels,
I think there's a little side of NFL fans that
hopes Jade and Daniels struggles a little bit to see
the regression, to see the drama unfold.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
So to have Terry McLaurin back is a big deal.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Because Jade and Daniels also this, He's not surprising teams
this year. Everybody's ready for him. There's no shock factor
with Jade and Daniels. So he needs to be his
best version of himself and that best version of himself
includes Terry McLaurin and the commanders know that, and the
Commander's got the deal done. Great deal for both sides.
(12:55):
Thanks for watching the show today.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
This is The Grind, a sports podcast. All have a
wonderful day.
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