Commanders' Jayden Daniels seems hopeful about how Terry McLaurin contract standoff will end

A Monday report indicated that people within the Washington Commanders are confident the club and wide receiver Terry McLaurin will agree on a "compromise" contract extension after the 29-year-old, in the final year of his current deal, requested a trade on July 31.

During the ESPN broadcast of the preseason "Monday Night Football" game between the Commanders and Cincinnati Bengals, Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels strongly suggested he will once again have McLaurin as an offensive weapon this fall.

"I know he’ll be coming through the door soon," Daniels told ESPN's Lisa Salters while speaking about McLaurin, per Darius Hayes of Sports Illustrated. "I just gotta do what I gotta do daily. I know he’s working hard and hopefully moving forward soon, and we can get back out there." 

During Monday's edition of ESPN's "NFL Live" program, league insider Adam Schefter implied that a previous report claiming McLaurin wants "parts" of the five-year, $150M contract that the Pittsburgh Steelers gave DK Metcalf in March is accurate. Schefter also hinted that the Commanders want McLaurin to accept something more in the range of what Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans and Courtland Sutton of the Denver Broncos received. 

In March 2024, Evans agreed to a two-year deal reportedly worth $41M that included $11M "in the form of incentives and escalators" and $29M fully guaranteed at signing. More recently, Sutton inked a four-year, $92M contract extension earlier this summer. 

Evans will be 32 years old when the upcoming season gets underway, while Sutton turns 30 in October. McLaurin will turn 30 on Sept. 15.  

"The Commanders are trying to figure out where can [they] get a deal done, and the two sides have not been able to figure out a common ground," Schefter added about the Washington-McLaurin situation. 

As of Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook continued to list the Commanders tied for third (with the San Francisco 49ers and the Green Bay Packers) among the betting favorites at +950 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LX. Meanwhile, only Ja'Marr Chase of the Bengals tallied more touchdown receptions (17) than McLaurin (13) last season. 

Daniels seems confident his team will ensure his favorite target is happy by the time the Commanders open the upcoming campaign with a home game versus the New York Giants on Sept. 7. It remains to be seen if McLaurin will play against the Giants if he doesn't sign an extension before the first Sunday of September arrives.