At some point, even the most loyal soldiers drop the shield. Terry McLaurin has been Washington’s offensive Band-Aid since 2019, covering QB chaos and scheme misfires with nothing but route precision and silence. But lately? He’s no longer silent. Because he might not have any patience left. McLaurin skipped OTAs. Then minicamp. And with training camp creeping in like an unwanted Monday, ESPN says he’s “not happy.” What a bummer! The guy just dropped 1,096 yards and 13 touchdowns, yet the front office hasn’t paid him what he deserves. Meanwhile, the Commanders seem stuck debating the meaning of ‘elite.’
What’s worse? Jayden Daniels, the QB they’re building around, is out here practicing without his WR1. Now, local whispers are turning into broadcast warnings. On The Team 980, Chris Russell and Lynnell Willingham cracked open the possibility that if this contract standoff drags past mid-August, a trade request or permission to seek one might finally land on the table. “I said there’s a 15 to 20 per cent chance that if we get to mid-August and this thing isn’t resolved, there’s a trade request or a permission granted.” Russell gave it a 15–20% chance.
Willingham wasn’t shocked. “This is the National Football League… They got a job to do over in Ashburn, point blank, period,” he said bluntly. Fans build attachments, but front offices play monopoly. And when a player like McLaurin wants top-tier money, the franchise either matches it or gambles without him.
If the Terry McLaurin-Commanders contract standoff reaches mid-August. Then what? @Russellmania621 and @Nell_BTP discuss pic.twitter.com/a4EfAvvgL2
— The Team 980 (@team980) July 10, 2025
The Commanders are doing it the Cowboys’ way this time, apparently. They don’t want to overpay…. So, they are weighing options like Jerry’s doing with Micah Parsons. But they also can’t afford to lose a guy, so they are stalling. They point to precedent. Debo Samuel didn’t sign until August 1. Brandon Aiyuk? August 31. The front office, led by Adam Peters, is playing hardball. But here’s the kicker: McLaurin already played nice last time. He signed a deal in 2022 that aged poorly in a ballooning wide receiver market. Now that the price tag is higher, he’s asking for what Amon-Ra St. Brown, A.J. Brown, and others are getting – somewhere between $24–30 million per year. And honestly? That’s the going rate.
While the Commanders juggle culture-building and cap discipline, their offense is bleeding reps. Rookie Luke McCaffrey and TE Ben Sinnott might be promising, but they’re unproven. McLaurin isn’t. And if the front office lets this drag into mid-August without a resolution, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if that trade request everyone’s quietly bracing for becomes very real. And when it does? The AFC’s already watching… with binoculars.
Terry McLaurin’s holdout sparks AFC trade frenzy
Bleacher Report floated the Raiders as a prime suitor. They’ve got the cash ($90 million in projected cap space for 2026), the draft capital (eight picks), and a glaring need at wide receiver. Add in Geno Smith at QB and a young offensive core begging for a leader, and you’ve got a landing spot that makes actual sense. McLaurin is chaos-proof. He’s played with eight different QBs and still cooked. Vegas sees that.
The Steelers are another name that’s heating up. George Pickens is gone, traded to Dallas. And out of nowhere, Mark Kaboly casually threw gas on the fire with an “Did the Steelers trade for McLaurin?” post on X. That was enough. FanSided’s Romell Williams even pitched McLaurin as the perfect complement to Aaron Rodgers, citing his precision, toughness, and ability to execute on timing-based offenses. It’s all hypothetical, but it’s not just fan fiction anymore.
Still, the biggest hurdle remains Washington’s indecisiveness. They want to keep McLaurin. And with Daniels losing his No. 1 target before Week 1 would be catastrophic. But wanting to keep someone and actually doing it? Not the same thing. If this thing isn’t resolved by mid-August, don’t expect quiet negotiations. Expect movement. Expect calls. And maybe – finally – expect Terry McLaurin to say what he’s kept quiet for years: I’m done.
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