As the Washington Commanders get ready for training camp next week, the situation with their star wide receiver, Terry McLaurin, remains unresolved.
Since Washington hasn’t made notable progress in locking up McLaurin with a long-term extension, the trade rumors are beginning to sizzle a bit.
Could a team like the New England Patriots soon begin reaching out to the Commanders for a potential McLaurin trade? SI’s Albert Breer suggests that’s a possibility.
“I think the Patriots would be very interested in this,” Breer said on NBC Sports Boston recently.
“There is a price point for all of it. What would that mean? Obviously, he’s not going to come here with an unresolved contract situation. So, you would be talking about a draft pick, plus a contract. He’s a little older than people realize because he was a five-year college guy. He’s over 30 now, but certainly as far as what they are looking for from a person, from a player, this guy checks every box.”
The Patriots have been on the hunt for an established No. 1 receiver to put on the field for Drake Maye to target. Being that Maye is the 2024 third-overall pick, he’s a major investment for New England and needs all the weapons he can get to better his development.
While having interest in McLaurin would be an obvious scenario for the Patriots, it still seems unlikely they would get the opportunity to take him out of Washington. Like many insiders and analysts, Breer believes the Commanders will ultimately satisfy McLaurin with a new deal.
“There hasn’t been much progress because there hasn’t been much talk between the sides,” Breer explained.
“I think that’s why Terry felt compelled to say what he said publicly. This is a guy who has been a team captain for a long time, exemplary character, all of that. My anticipation is that the Commanders are going to take a swing and get something done with him over the course of a week. It makes too much sense for both sides.”
Earlier this week, McLaurin met with reporters for the first time this offseason. After skipping mandatory minicamp, McLaurin didn’t seem like a player who was guaranteed to show up for training camp unless a deal was done.
“I haven’t decided that yet,” McLaurin told reporters. “I’m trying to take things day by day and that’s the disappointing part. I was hoping up until this point things would clear up a lot more than they have. I haven’t made that decision yet, I’m just going to see how the rest of this week goes and take it day by day and go from there. I’m not making any declarations of one way or another but I’m just kind of speaking on how it’s made me feel, how this offseason’s been, the frustrations I’ve felt, that’s all true.”
McLaurin wants to remain with the Commanders, but under fair contractual circumstances. It’s up to Washington’s front office to decide whether they will meet his price point. If not, they might find themselves in a position to field calls for him. In that case, the Patriots could be one of the first teams in line for the McLaurin sweepstakes.
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