One Crucial Element Holding Up Terry McLaurin's Commanders Contract

We are nearly at the end of training camp, and Washington Commanders receiver Terry McLaurin is still without his new deal.

Given the Commanders know how valuable he is to Jayden Daniels and the offense, it does seem odd that the franchise, which hasn't had any significant bumps in the road since Dan Quinn took over, now has a big one, and one that can be avoided.

With no movement on a contract, McLaurin pulled the trigger on a trade request weeks ago, but still no movement on a deal...and now we know why.

Per ESPN's John Keim it isn't money that is holding up negotiations, it is something else entirely...and the Washington analytics department has a big say in it.

“This likely remains the biggest sticking point because it frames the argument for Washington,” Keim wrote. “McLaurin will turn 30 on Sept. 15, which means he’d be 31 when an extension begins. The Commanders rely heavily on analytics, and the numbers aren’t kind to receivers at that age. According to ESPN Research, over the past five seasons only three receivers 31 years or older have played at least 10 games and averaged 70-plus receiving yards per game; six have averaged 60-plus.”

So is Washington basing on whether or not to pay McLaurin is he age? It certainly seems like it.

But there can be no denying that the Commanders' offense, without Terry, would be a shell of itself and would likely be missing a key ingredient that makes it a dangerous unit.

Do we still think McLaurin and Washington will come to terms? Yes, but if age is a big sticking point, well, there's no changing that, and in truth, the franchise would have known this was coming down the pipeline, so if this was an issue, why not get out ahead of it and move on and get draft capital?

Either way, this contract saga shows no signs of ending, but if there is a player who can buck the trend for aging receivers, it might just be Terry.