Monday brought a splashy headline related to NFL contract talks, with the Washington Commanders securing wide receiver Terry McLaurin on a three-year, $96 million extension. Certainly the deal is notable on a number of levels.
First, it resolves a months-long standoff between McLaurin and the Commanders, which escalated to a trade request this summer. Second, it satisfies McLaurin’s long-reported desire for a true pay raise, making the Pro Bowler one of the league’s six highest-paid pass catchers going into the 2025 campaign. Third, it eases any worries from Washington fans about the club’s playoff-caliber roster losing one of its most trustworthy playmakers just as young quarterback Jayden Daniels storms the rest of the NFL.
Dramatic as it is, however, the McLaurin deal shouldn’t be that surprising at all.
We can actually look to two other big names as prime reasons why:
- Deebo Samuel, McLaurin’s new running mate at wide receiver; and
- Jerry Jones, outspoken owner of the rival Dallas Cowboys
What on Earth do Samuel and Jones have to do with McLaurin’s situation? Well, the McLaurin contract issues seemed to reach a new level of panic when reports indicated the wideout had requested a trade out of Washington. But “trade request” doesn’t mean nearly as much as you’d think these days. And Samuel was Exhibit A for this back in 2022, which coincidentally was the same offseason McLaurin skipped spring workouts to command his first long-term contract extension with the Commanders.
Samuel was essentially at the height of his career with the 49ers in 2022, fresh off a 1,400-yard breakout in San Francisco. The 49ers weren’t ready to meet his demands for a lucrative raise, however, so he proceeded to request a trade out of Kyle Shanahan’s offense altogether. Everyone and their mother dreamed up landing spots for the All-Pro. Until July 31, when Samuel struck a three-year, $74 million deal to stay put. Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson pulled a similar stunt a year later, literally asking to be dealt on social media before later putting pen to paper on a multi-year extension. Funny how feelings are mended so quickly.
This is all why Jerry Jones made headlines for his seemingly out-of-touch comments about Micah Parsons, the Cowboys’ best player, requesting his own trade amid stalled contract talks this summer: “Don’t lose any sleep over this,” Jerry assured fans. Except he wasn’t out of touch. He was in touch. Now, of course, Jones is a bit of a different animal; he admittedly thrives on drumming up drama in Dallas. But the sentiment comes from a real place: Trade requests are almost always leverage plays — nothing more, nothing less. Players will forget they ever wanted out as soon as the bottom line is properly addressed.
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Which is precisely what happened with McLaurin … and precisely what McLaurin himself predicted. If you look beyond the summer trade request and look instead to McLaurin’s own words from the start of training camp, you can see that the receiver — though openly frustrated by negotiations — always intended to remain in Washington. The Commanders are the only NFL team he’s ever had. He has an affinity for the area and the organization he’s helped turn into a contender. He wanted to get a deal done in town. He just wanted to get a deal done at his price point at a position that saw major contract turnover this offseason.
And here’s the thing: The Commanders were almost certainly not going to let him go, unless of course a McLaurin suitor included an equivalent pass catching talent in a trade. General manager Adam Peters has done little but prioritize win-now talent for the Jayden Daniels era, from stockpiling proven veterans last offseason to centering this spring’s biggest swings on longtime vets like Samuel and Laremy Tunsil. Adding all those pieces only to trade McLaurin, arguably the most surehanded of Daniels’ weapons, would’ve been borderline lunacy. Which is why you never heard any whispers of any meaningful trade talks even occurring. Terry McLaurin needed a bumpy road to get his deal. But the deal was always an inevitability.
The best part now that the dust has settled: All sides should be happy. McLaurin gets to retake the field with financial security. The Commanders get their WR1 locked up, while also not overcommitting on a three-year deal. And Washington fans get to erase the drama of the last few months as soon as McLaurin starts streaking downfield for a Daniels bomb in a couple of weeks.