2022 has been an abject disaster for the Washington Commanders.
On the field, they solved their quarterback problem by overpaying the Indianapolis Colts for Carson Wentz, a passer who couldn’t beat the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars with his season on the line. They reached for solid, but potentially unspectacular, wide receiver Jahan Dotson with their first round draft pick. They remained mostly quiet in free agency.
Off the field, their owner remains locked in a battle with Congress over the allegedly dysfunctional workplace he oversaw. Plans for a new stadium in Virginia were delayed indefinitely after the local legislature tabled a proposal that would have awarded the team public construction funds. Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio called the attempted overthrow of the United States government a “dust-up.”
But Washington fans finally got good news Tuesday. Wide receiver Terry McLaurin, arguably the team’s best player, reportedly signed a three-year extension that will keep him near the nation’s capital through at least 2025.
More importantly, it pays him money befitting one of the best wideouts in the game:
The new three-year extension for Terry McLaurin includes a $28 million signing bonus, the largest given to any wide receiver, and also has 76.4 percent of the new money in deal guaranteed. The deal contractually ties the 26-year-old McLaurin to Washington through the 2025 season.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 28, 2022
McLaurin didn’t just *get* massive guarantees from a team in dire need of star power; he earned them. The former third-round pick has been wildly productive in his three seasons in the league, averaging more than 1,000 receiving yards each year despite playing with these quarterbacks:
- Case Keenum
- Dwayne Haskins
- Colt McCoy
- Alex Smith
- Kyle Allen
- Taylor Heinicke
- Garret Gilbert
- Ryan Fitzpatrick (for one quarter)
Keenum is the best quarterback he’s ever played with in the NFL, and with Wentz coming in for 2022 that may not change anytime soon. Even so, he’s been able to spin hay into gold for an offense lacking downfield weapons. Since 2019, he’s had 222 receptions for the Commanders. Here are the three next-closest wide receivers over that span:
- Steven Sims: 61
- Cam Sims: 49
- Adam Humphries: 41
That’s horrible, but it shows how good McLaurin is. Opposing defenses know there’s only one place their high safety needs to be, and it’s wherever Washington’s WR1 is going. Despite this, he still managed 2,171 receiving yards the last two seasons, even with the aforementioned list of XFL-adjacent quarterbacks running his offense.
That’s why he’s getting top five wide receiver money even when his raw stats paint him as more of a top 20 guy. He’s been one of the few stable aspects of an offense devoid of downfield playmakers and, for the most part, passers capable of consistently working 20+ yards beyond the line of scrimmage. Now he gets Wentz, who at the very least attempted 4.4 deep balls per game his last two seasons in the NFC East. He’ll have defensive pressure reduced by a potential running mate in Dotson, who may not be a pure WR1 but could be one hell of a WR2.
The Commanders still have a long way to go before they look like a legitimate playoff threat. There’s no guarantee Wentz can be anything more than a shell of the MVP-adjacent quarterback he was back in 2017. The receiving corps beyond McLaurin is filled with question marks. A defense loaded with raw talent backslid last fall.
But McLaurin looks every bit the foundational piece Washington so badly needs. Now the franchise has him locked in for the near future, avoiding the kind of sell-off that made A.J. Brown a Philadelphia Eagle. That’s a win for a team in desperate need of one this offseason, even if it came at a hefty price.