Commanders Get Bad News on Potential $100 Million NFL All-Pro WR

If we have learned one thing from NFL contract disputes in recent years, it’s that there’s usually just one outcome: It ends up costing the team more money the longer they wait.

The Washington Commanders made headlines for the wrong reasons on May 21 when FOX Sports NFL Insider Jordan Schultz reported NFL All-Pro wide receiver Terry McLaurin was missing from offseason workouts over a contract dispute.

“All-Pro WR Terry McLaurin was not at practice today as offseason workouts continue,” Schultz wrote on his official X account. “He had been a full participant previously and is entering the final year of his contract. Worth monitoring as Phase 3 of Washington’s program kicks off in under a week…”

Whatever the ask on behalf of McLaurin and his representatives might be, it’s kind of stunning no deal has been done yet because aside from quarterback Jayden Daniels, there is no player on the roster more important to the Commanders’ success in 2025 than McLaurin.

That the Commanders enter 2025 as legitimate Super Bowl contenders for the first in a generation only underlines the issue.

It might also be a situation where the details of a deal already agreed to are just being worked out. That’s the best case scenario.

“Sounds like an extension is right around the corner for Terry McLaurin who deserves every dollar,” USA Today’s Josh Taylor wrote on his official X account on May 21. 

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McLaurin-Daniels One of NFL’s Great Duos

For the first 5 seasons of his career, McLaurin averaged 1,056.6 receiving yards per season, including career lows of 58 receptions for 919 yards as a rookie in 2019. Each year, his team just seemed to get worse.

Then, somehow, things turned around in 2024.

Paired with rookie quarterback Daniels, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, McLaurin led the Commanders with 82 receptions for 1,096 yards and a franchise record 13 touchdowns on the way to earning NFL All-Pro honors for the first time. The Commanders went 12-5, advanced to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 1991 and had their first winning season with McLaurin on the roster.

McLaurin’s value only continued to rise in the postseason, where he had 14 receptions for 237 yards and scored 3 touchdowns — one in each game. He’s now headed into the final season of the 3-year, $68.36 million contract extension he signed in March 2022.

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McLaurin’s New Contract Could Top $100 Million

While Spotrac has McLaurin’s market value at a projected 3-year, $89.7 million contract with $29.9 million in average annual salary, that is probably a bit low.

Considering the way the market for the NFL’s best wide receivers has skyrocketed the last 2 years, McLaurin seems more in line with a 3-year, $100 million contract with approximately $70 million in guaranteed money. That would make McLaurin one of the NFL’s Top 5 highest paid wide receivers at a little over $33 million per season.

“The short answer is we want to make Terry a Commander for a long time,” Washington general manager Adam Peters told The Athletic’s Ben Standig on April 1. ” … “He’s a great Commander. He got better and better as the season went on, not only as a player, but as a leader. It was really impressive to see him grow so much … Everybody can get better, even the great ones.”