Full disclosure: We didn’t have boots on the ground in Ashburn, Va., for Tuesday’s OTA, so we’ll rely on Commanders beat reporters like Nicki Jhabvala, John Keim, JP Finlay, Zach Selby and Ben Standig to be our eyes, ears and question askers. Follow those respected reporters if you don’t already.
Terry McLaurin wasn’t around the Commanders this time last year. He skipped the offseason program, illustrating his desire for a new contract. It took some time but he eventually got one, signing a three-year deal worth up to $96 million on Aug. 25.
The process cost him valuable time working with quarterback Jayden Daniels that, a calendar year later, those two sorely missed.
“While I was going into Year 7, Jayden was going into Year 2,” McLaurin said in a press conference after Tuesday’s OTA session. “Our connection is extremely important to build during this time. That’s why we wanted to jump on it as early as possible.”
McLaurin and Daniels are taking full advantage of this spring, finding lockstep while learning new coordinator David Blough’s offense. McLaurin will be moving around the formation a ton, trying to unlock even greater for one of the NFL’s elite receivers.
“We’ve been able to hit the ground running,” McLaurin said. “It has allowed us to work out a lot of early kinks. We’re connecting on a lot of plays early. We’ve talked through a lot of things. He has texted me on the side. We’re communicating all the time. When we get to camp, we’re expecting to be crisp.”
McLaurin must be crisp to thrive in this new scheme. There’s a lot to learn, considering he’ll play multiple receiver positions over his relatively static presence in Kliff Kingsbury’s system.
“We’ll do the things that he does well to try to put us in advantageous positions,” Blough said. “So, he’s done an excellent job so far with handling what we’ve thrown at him. And then, you know, we’re just, we’re gonna keep asking him to keep pushing the envelope to build on the great career he is already had, and then try to take a
another step.”
While McLaurin has been successful in several systems, he’s excited about the prospects and potential of Blough’s new scheme.
“Newness brings a breath of fresh air,” McLaurin said. “I had success in the offense we were just in, so I don’t have too many bad things to say about it because I had a lot of success there, but being multiple and moving around as a receiver (is big). When you’re the No. 1 guy and a team has to worry about you playing 1,2 or 3 on the left, 1,2 or 3 on the right, or what I’m doing in the stack or in motion, if forces them to communicate more and study my route stems.
“That’s different versus knowing that No. 17 is going to be on the left side and they can shift the defense and play towards that. That’s what I started seeing at the end of the year. You’ll see guys moving all over the place. …I think that’s exciting.”
It’s safe to say that McLaurin’s on the rebound following a rare down year beset by injuries. He broke a streak of five straight 1,000-yard seasons in 2025 in the first year of his new contract. That’s not a happy memory, but he doesn’t want to forget it. It’s a motivator now, to find vintage form and help the Commanders return to prominence.
“I’m looking forward to continuing to make plays,” McLaurin said, “and be the go-to guy they’re expecting me to be.”
