Terry McLaurin and the Washington Commanders have still yet to reach an agreement on a long-term deal to keep the star wide receiver with the franchise beyond this season. And with their contract talks struggling to get over the finish line, offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said the Commanders’ offense is at an impasse. The team needs McLaurin, he said, to return to the practice field soon for the unit to round into form ahead of the 2025 opener.
“There hasn’t been a ton of contact with him,” Kingsbury said at Friday’s media availability. “He’s been here, but he’s been working with the trainers. Until he gets back on the grass, that’s when we’ll start building that back up.”
McLaurin missed a chunk of Washington’s voluntary workouts and skipped mandatory minicamp earlier this summer. He has not worked with the staff in the meeting rooms as much as he would under normal circumstances, Kingsbury said, and the reigning second-team All-Pro wideout remains absent from the practice field entirely.
“I’m huge on walkthroughs, on practice, things like that,” Kingsbury said. “Because until you get on the grass and actually do it and feel the timing and feel the depths of routes and things of that nature, I don’t know exactly how much you can get out of that. I think we’re at that point where we need to start getting those guys, when they’re available, out there and gelling and seeing what we are as an offense.”
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There should not be much of a learning curve for McLaurin once he steps back into action. He racked up at least 919 yards and four touchdowns in each of his first six years as a pro and took his game to the next level last season with a career-high 13 scores. The consistency and immediate success under Kingsbury’s system should aid in his ability to ramp up in time to contribute early in the season.
But McLaurin’s absence has a negative impact on the rest of the offense. Team chemistry and offensive identity takes a hit with him on the sideline.
“That’s a work in progress,” Kingsbury said. “There’s no doubt. I don’t think until we get some of these other pieces back we’re going to know exactly what we are. We’ve had some good opportunities to see other guys get work in these positions, but when you don’t have your projected top two outside receivers, both your projected inside pieces at guard, its not going to really give you the chance to gel or really build that relationship until you get everybody else on the grass. That’s something we have to get to over the next three weeks.”
The expectation is that McLaurin will seek a contract in the realm of four years and $33 million, which are the figures DK Metcalf received from the Steelers when he arrived via the Seahawks. McLaurin is in the final year of a three-year deal that averages $23.2 million annually.