Terry McLaurin and the Commanders’ front office officially need couples therapy. They’re practically only staying together for the kids (Jayden Daniels) at this point. McLaurin made it clear that he needs more from the relationship, though, as he requested a trade on Thursday afternoon.
Will the Commanders give in to the ultimatum? Probably not. McLaurin’s simply too good and proved he’s got plenty of gas left in the tank last season. They also have a cheat code that should allow their Super Bowl window to remain wide open over the next few years… an elite quarterback on his rookie deal. Why would they want to ship their number one receiver out of town?
Regardless, McLaurin lit the fuse. That probably means the two sides are far apart on a deal, and it’s gotten messy. Or the front office made the cardinal sin of saying something nasty about his mom. Such a thing has led to the downfall of countless marriages in the past. I don’t think there’s any chance that anything else led us to this point.
Again, I think they’ll ultimately come to an agreement, but in the meantime, speculating is fun. So that’s what I’m going to do. Which teams make the most sense for the two-time Pro Bowler?
Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers check all the boxes for a potential landing spot for McLaurin. Firstly, and most importantly, they have enough cap space to pull off the move. Considering it will probably take a day two selection to land him, whoever coughs it up will likely want to lock him in long-term relatively quickly. The Bolts are projected to have over $93 million in available cap space next year and also have roughly $32 million to burn this year. That’ll be enough to get it done.
Los Angeles also has a glaring need at the receiver position. The sudden retirement of Mike Williams has left them in a situation where they have to rely on Quinton Johnston. While they were probably happy with the strides he made last year, I don’t think that’s a situation they want to be in. They drafted Tre Harris in the second round, but it feels safe to say they would much rather be in a position where he is fighting it out with Johnston for snaps as the third option at receiver.
The Chargers are also a good team with a relatively clear Super Bowl window. While they obviously have to get past the NFL’s Grim Reaper in their division to get it done, they have enough talent (and a certified guy at head coach in Jim Harbaugh) to get it done. Sometimes teams need to bring in reinforcements, and McLaurin would be a potentially potent one.
Tennessee Titans
Remember when I said the Chargers are the perfect example of a team that could trade for McLaurin because they check all the boxes? Well, the Titans definitely check two of those boxes, and they’re the two most important ones for the sake of this article. If you’re new here and are wondering which two boxes I’m referring to, then just listen to their GM’s recent stance on their ability to win the big one.
Silly question? Sure. Terrible answer? Definitely. How hard is it to show confidence in your guys? Even if it’s (obvious) blind confidence, hype them up! Whatever, though, getting back to the plot.. They are projected to have over $95 million in cap space next year. That’s a lot of dough.
Their top three receivers are Calvin Ridley, Tyler Lockett, and Van Jefferson. Either Elic Ayomanor or Chimere Dike will probably overtake the latter two sooner than later, but they are nothing more than unproven fourth-round dart throws at this point. Not exactly moving the needle (or the ball confidently down the field) there. Terry McLaurin would fix that in a hurry.
The Titans are also hopeful they have found the future of their franchise in Cam Ward. Do you know what helps franchise quarterbacks become franchise quarterbacks? A star receiver. Could Calvin Ridley be that? Maybe. He would be much more effective as the second option in a passing attack, though. He proved that during his time in Atlanta. Meanwhile, McLaurin would provide a similar presence to the one he gave Jayden Daniels last year. Tough to pass that up if I’m Borgonzi.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders don’t necessarily have a glaring need at receiver (considering Brock Bowers’ presence as a do-it-all threat at TE). However, as it stands today, they will be relying on Jack Bech, Dont’e Thornton, or Tre Tucker to play a big role on offense after Jakobi Meyers. Unproven rookies and a gadget threat out of the slot… A few teams have it much worse (more on one of them later), but the addition of Terry McLaurin would provide a massive boost to their passing attack.
The fact that Las Vegas is projected to have the most available cap space in the league (over $115 million) is another reason they make a ton of sense for McLaurin. The Raiders also seem to believe they aren’t far from competing for a Super Bowl. I find it hard to believe they would trade for a 34-year-old QB in Geno Smith, hire a 73-year-old head coach in Pete Carroll, and draft a running back in the first round if they didn’t.
The Raiders will need to put up POINTS if they want to compete in that division. Their defense was subpar at best with Christian Wilkins. How good do you think they’ll be without him? Scary Terry would be a welcome addition to a young group of pass-catchers.
Seattle Seahawks
Call me a hater, but I’m not convinced that the Sam Darnold from weeks one through seventeen of the 2024 NFL season is the Sam Darnold that we are going to see in Seattle. Kevin O’Connell is an offensive genius, and the Vikings’ supporting cast is one of the league’s finest. The Seahawks paid him like a known commodity, though, so it’s imperative they put him in a position to succeed.
Much like the Raiders, the receiver position isn’t a glaring weakness for Seattle. They added Cooper Kupp to the fold this offseason, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba is one of the NFL’s best young pass-catchers. However, the third receiver spot is currently up for grabs. Marquez Valdes-Scantling is the favorite to land the job, but Tory Horton has an outside shot to grab the job. Regardless, neither of them inspires much confidence. Scary Terry certainly would.
The Seahawks have $35 million at their disposal for the 2025 season and are projected to have just north of $58 million next year. That’ll play. It also feels safe to say that they’re confident in their ability to make a serious run. That would be the only reason to take a big swing at Darnold on the open market. Taking a slightly smaller swing on McLaurin makes a lot of sense for them.
New York Jets
I know the Jets just resigned Garrett Wilson to a four-year, $130 million contract. However, that really shouldn’t matter here. Last time I checked, every team relies on at least two receivers heavily in its offense. Last time I checked, the Jets are slated to start *checks notes* ALLEN LAZARD on the opposite side of Wilson. Oh, wait, maybe they’re going to start Josh Reynolds. Or Tyler Johnson? Remember when I said a receiving corps can get so much worse than the one the Raiders will trot out there? I obviously wasn’t talking about Seattle..
Justin Fields needs help. He always has, and probably always will. He struggles to throw with anticipation and needs to see his receiver come open before throwing the ball. There’s no way he will be able to thrive with this group of weapons. Wilson will have 1700 yards, and the rest of the receiving corps will combine for 1100. That is, unless they were able to land McLaurin.
Much like the other teams on this list, the Jets have enough cap space to pull off the deal. They have just under $34 million and are projected to have roughly $71 million next season. McLaurin and Wilson would immediately be one of the league’s premier receiver duos. More importantly, it would allow them to see if Fields has what it takes to be their franchise quarterback. Well worth the price of admission for a presumed second-round pick and a shiny new contract.
