Throughout the offseason, the biggest storyline for the Washington Commanders has been wide receiver Terry McLaurin. As this ordeal gets closer to dragging into training camp, one analyst gave his thoughts on the situation.
Heading into the final year of his contract, McLaurin has been in search of a long-term commitment from the Commanders. When the two sides were unable to work out a deal, the star wideout opted to depart from minicamp. Though the front office has been confident they'll work something out with McLaurin, there still appears to be no end in sight.
Following McLaurin's recent comments on his holdout earlier this week, Chris "Mad Dog" Russo discussed the situation on ESPN's First Take. Seeing that he still has another year on his deal, he feels the Commanders' wideout shouldn't be upset with his situation at the moment.
"Did he sign a three-year contract? Yes. Is the contract go through this year? Yes. Is he getting paid $25 million a year? Yes," Russo said. "If he played badly last year, would the Commanders still be on the hook for $25 million? Yes. When a player plays poorly and doesn't live up to his contract does he say you know what I didn't play well let me give the organization its money back? No. So why when he outplays his contract should he get more money, he's got a contract."
McLaurin's holdout comes on the heels of one of his best campaigns in Washington. He thrived playing with quarterback Jayden Daniels, racking up 1,096 yards and a career-high 13 touchdowns. Following his strong 2024 season, McLaurin now seeks an extension that has him compensated similarly to his top counterparts at wide receiver.
After having weeks to work out a new contract, the Commanders have officially reached a doomsday scenario. Training camp is set to start in a week, and McLaurin still finds himself unhappy and away from the team. He hasn't decided how he will handle things moving forward, but he did toss out the idea of not showing up to stand firm on his holdout.
As a team with aspirations of getting back to the conference championship, the last thing the Commanders want is off-field drama with one of their top players hanging over them.
In these final days before camp, it remains unclear if the two sides will reach an agreement that will officially put an end to this standoff.
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