Daily Slop – 2 Aug 25 – Commanders WR Terry McLaurin jumps 45 spots in this year’s NFL Top-100 list

A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East, the NFL and sports in general, and a sprinkling of other stuff

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ESPN

Ranking all 32 NFL teams’ coaching staffs, coordinators in 2025

13. Washington Commanders

• Head coach: Dan Quinn
• Offensive coordinator: Kliff Kingsbury
• Defensive coordinator: Joe Whitt Jr.
• 2024 ranking: 31

If I didn’t know anything before last season about Quinn and Kingsbury, the Commanders would be much higher on this list. Both knocked the ball out of the park. Quinn’s defense has evolved plenty from his days in Seattle and in Atlanta; it evolved again last season with a new chess piece in Frankie Luvu. Without an elite pass rusher or cover corner — usually non-negotiables for a playoff run — the Commanders got enough out of their defense to make the NFC Championship Game, in which they simply got outclassed.

But I’ve seen Quinn’s defense enough against the top offensive schemes — those of Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay and their ilk — to know he still struggles against teams that can add bodies to the line of scrimmage, stretch the defense horizontally in the running game and then rip play-action passes behind. Quinn’s status as a players-first coach and culture-setter is unimpeachable, but I’d like to see another season of this defense.

Similarly, I enjoyed Kingsbury’s 2024 efforts more than any other Kingsbury edition in the NFL. I’d just like to see it again, please, before I get too far over my skis.

The Commanders ran a college-inspired offense heavy on packaged plays that allowed them to get into great playcalls at the line of scrimmage. Their screen game was perfectly executed; their QB run game was always a danger. But we know from the past 10 to 15 years of football that collegiate, option-oriented offenses can hit an upper bound on complexity and struggle once defenses get keyed into tendencies — it happened to Kingsbury already in Arizona. Kingsbury stayed ahead of the curve last season, and I am cautiously optimistic for 2025. Emphasis on cautiously.

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ESPN

Terry McLaurin trade request: Should the Commanders pay up?

Adam Peters’ honeymoon in Washington ended on Thursday evening. While the general manager of the Commanders has deservedly been lauded for his work in rebuilding a moribund franchise and getting it all the way back to the NFC Championship Game in his first season in charge, Thursday’s trade request from star wide receiver Terry McLaurin is the first real conflict of the Peters era.

While the Commanders have moved on from veterans Kendall Fuller and Jonathan Allen during Peters’ two offseasons in charge, McLaurin might be the most popular holdover from the pre-Jayden Daniels days. In addition to being one of the remaining players who endured former team owner Daniel Snyder’s final years with the organization, McLaurin was consistently productive despite playing with a string of quarterbacks who either didn’t pan out or quickly suffered career-altering injuries.

I’ll start with what’s obvious: The Commanders’ offense looks very different without its top wideout. I had them 13th in my playmaker rankings earlier this offseason, but that was with McLaurin as their most valuable option. Daniels posted a Total QBR of 73.8 with him on the field last season, but that fell to 63.0 across 90 dropbacks without him.

Taking McLaurin out of the lineup pushes Deebo Samuel into the top wideout role, and while Samuel can be overwhelming at his best, he has struggled with inconsistent play, drops and injuries during his career. Noah Brown and Michael Gallup, who was out of the league in 2024, would be competing for more work on the outside. Young draftees such as Luke McCaffrey and rookie Jaylin Lane would go from being depth players to potential starters. The entire wide receiver rotation would be stretched about one spot too far in the lineup, which makes sense; the Commanders built this team expecting McLaurin to be the No. 1.

What’s keeping the Commanders and McLaurin from agreeing to a new deal?

Fair value and how age impacts the idea of what NFL players are worth. Teams are paying more attention to aging curves and how risky it can be to make major investments in players as they approach and pass age 30. When there has been a disconnect between a player’s value and the moves teams have made in recent years, it has almost always been with well-known veterans who are ending their second contracts and looking for third deals or significant new guarantees as they near 30 years old.

That’s where we are with McLaurin, who turns 30 in September. He is heading into the final year of his second contract with the Commanders, a three-year extension that was designed to get him to a third contract before turning 30.

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Washington Post (paywall)

After Terry McLaurin’s trade request, NFL execs still expect him to stay

Negotiations have gotten heated, and friction has formed. Still, agents and executives around the league believe he’ll remain in Washington.

[R]ival executives and agents expect the Commanders and McLaurin will ultimately bridge what remains a significant gulf.

“Lot of drama that will ultimately get resolved,” said one high-ranking NFL team executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to openly discuss another franchise. McLaurin’s “ask is probably absurd, but there is a premium for having been the face of the franchise through hard times. Not sure why you throw money at Von Miller and others before solving this. He has no leverage, but you have to see a little past that in this situation if you’re the Commanders.”

But the acrimony is there. McLaurin declared his preference to stay in Washington. The Commanders have made clear their admiration for McLaurin as a player and person and do not want to trade him. Friction has still formed.

A former NFL team executive viewed a trade as “highly unlikely” given the fit between player and team. “He wants to get paid, and he should,” the former executive said. “I also think he’s smart enough to realize being Jayden Daniels’s teammate and playing for Dan Quinn is on his side as well. Washington doesn’t want to start over with someone new when they’ve got a proven talent.”

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NFL.com

Top 100 Players of 2025, Nos. 60-51: Terry McLaurin rises amid trade request

52 (up 45 spots) – Terry McLaurin – Washington Commanders · WR

2024 stats: 17 games | 82 rec | 1,096 rec yds | 13.4 ypr | 13 rec TD

It was a year of change in Washington with the hiring of head coach Dan Quinn and the drafting of a young signal caller in Jayden Daniels. With all that newness, some experience and stability was in order, and McLaurin provided that. Putting together his fifth consecutive season of 1,000-plus receiving yards and a career-high in touchdowns that was almost double his previous total, McLaurin was the go-to option for Daniels throughout the season and the team’s first trip to the conference championships since the 1991 season. That performance was unfortunately followed by ongoing discussions over an extension this offseason, but assuming the Commanders can work things out with their star wideout, he’ll be expected to be back in the same steady role in 2025 as well.

NFL Pro Insight for McLaurin: Terry McLaurin gained the third-most yards (350) and tied for the most touchdowns (6) across 11 receptions when targeted on go routes this season.

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Front Office Sports

Commanders Seal Stadium Deal As D.C. Approves $1.1B in Funding

The Commanders have cleared a major political hurdle as they look to return to what owner Josh Harris calls their “spiritual home.”

The Commanders’ planned return to the District of Columbia took a giant step Friday as officials approved plans to build a $3.8 billion stadium and mixed-use development at the grounds of RFK Stadium, the team’s former home.

The Council of the District of Columbia passed the stadium bill by a 9–3 vote, one more than was necessary, confirming prior expectations among many area leaders. The assent followed a flurry of critical activity in recent days, including a recently sweetened offer from the Commanders as team president Mark Clouse and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser testified Wednesday before council members, a second lengthy public hearing this week, and a prior restructuring of the funding plan by council chair Phil Mendelson.

Ultimately, the District will supply about $1.1 billion toward the project, while the Commanders are due to fund at least $2.7 billion and are responsible for all cost overruns. The latest changes also call for additional community support from the team, as well as heightened consideration of environmental matters in the project.

Key swing votes arrived early Friday from two council members—Zachary Parker and Janeese Lewis George—after they helped secure a further agreement with the team to hire a majority of D.C. residents to work on not just the stadium construction, as had been planned, but also for the larger mixed-use development. Parker had previously engaged in some of the most contentious questioning of Bowser in Wednesday’s hearing, with labor-related issues at the center of much of it.

After the vote, though, those preexisting political tensions were largely forgotten.

“The era of a crumbling sea of asphalt on the banks of the Anacostia is finally coming to an end,” Bowser said in a statement. “In its place, we will bring our team home and deliver a state-of-the-art, Super Bowl–ready stadium for our Commanders. … We will build a campus that makes our city proud for generations of Washingtonians to come.”

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Commanders.com

Statement from Managing Partner Josh Harris

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ESPN

A comprehensive timeline of the Commanders’ return to RFK

On Friday, the process Harris spoke about was pushed over the line when the D.C. Council voted to approve the stadium and plans for the 174-acre site. It will have to vote again on Sept. 17, but multiple sources from both sides with knowledge of the process said that will almost assuredly just be a confirmation of the first vote.

That’s why Harris, Bowser — who has championed this return for more than a decade — the city and Commanders fans are now celebrating a Washington triumph that was almost three years in the making.

The new stadium, which will open in 2030, will represent the next — and perhaps most long-lasting — step in the franchise’s renaissance under Harris and his ownership group, which is why Harris looked so pleased when speaking to reporters alongside Bowers and Goodell last spring.

“For me, it’s memories,” Harris said. “Some of my happiest days were cheering for the old team watching the Super Bowls, watching the greats. For me to be able to allow for the city to have the same excitement I had growing up that we’ve been missing for so many years. That’s what it comes down to. It’s an amazing feeling.”

Here is a timeline of how Washington’s RFK return became a reality:

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Commanders.com

4 Commanders standouts from Week 2 of camp

Car’Lin Vigers

We talked about undrafted rookie Ja’Corey Brooks and his chances of making the roster last week; now, we’re flipping the field to highlight a UDFA on the defensive side of the ball.

Vigers, who played at the University of Louisiana-Monroe, has primarily worked with the second group and has had some impressive moments. He had pass breakups working against Michael Gallup and KJ Osborn. It’s clear that he needs to find ways of turning those deflections into interceptions, but he does a good job of putting himself in the right position.

Vigers’ biggest issue right now is being able to finish plays. There have been a few occasions where Vigers has had passes hit him in the hands only to bounce out of his grasp. He could also be a little better in terms of preventing penalties, as he was called for a hold on Gallup earlier in the week.

However, Vigers has good size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds) and shows strong instincts. The joint practice with the Patriots will be a big test for him, but there’s enough there to be encouraged about his development.

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Heavy.com

Commanders Sign ‘Field Stretching’ Wide Receiver, Former UFL Star

The Commanders have to at least begin to make minor moves toward a life without McLaurin, even if that just means adding depth in anticipation of the workload becoming way more spread out than anyone could have guessed.

Sanders had a very strange college career in terms of timing — he spent his entire time at Ole Miss as either the second or third option behind future NFL All-Pro A.J. Brown and future second round pick Elijah Moore.

While Brown and Moore rewrote the Rebels record books, Sanders picked up the scraps. He finished his career with 69 receptions for 1,453 yards and 10 touchdowns in 47 games, which included a whopping 21.1 yards per catch.

Sanders had his best year in his final season with 29 receptions for 549 yards and 4 touchdowns in 12 games but went undrafted in 2022 despite running the 40-yard dash in 4.48 seconds at the NFL scouting combine.

Sanders played for the Miami Dolphins in 2022 and 2023 and split time in 2024 with the Dolphins and New England Patriots but didn’t spend any time on the active roster.

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Podcasts & videos

S Will Harris on the Show, Latest Training Camp Updates & Who’s That Camper? | Commanders | Get Loud

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NFC East links

Bleeding Green Nation

The All-NFC East Offense

Assembling the best team from the NFL’s most important division.

Quarterback

Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles: Jalen Hurts has one of the most accomplished beginnings to any quarterback’s career ever. In five years, Hurts has led the Eagles to the playoffs all four years he was the starter, led the team to two Super Bowls, and won one. Hurts is coming off a dominant postseason performance where he completed over 71% of his passes for 726 yards and five scores while posting another five touchdowns on the ground. The way the Eagles have their offense is constructed, the passing game takes a backseat to the rushing attack. However, Hurts has shown he can be a force whenever he’s asked to step up and make big plays with his arm.

Second Team: Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders

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Blogging the Boys

Cowboys to sign veteran offensive lineman La’el Collins

Collins was signed by the Cowboys in 2015, and he ended up starting 71 of the 74 games he played in. After asking permission to seek a trade, Collins was released and signed with the Cincinnati Bengals. After tearing his ACL, he was released before ultimately coming back to the Cowboys. However, it was only for 12 days during their playoff run. Collins signed with the Buffalo Bills in 2024 but was released that August.

The Cowboys needed to make a move for much-needed depth and training camp purposes. Maybe Collins has enough left in the tank to be a contributor in 2025. He at least is a camp body until others get healthy.

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Blogging the Boys

Micah Parsons requests trade from Dallas Cowboys, says no longer wants to be on team

Simply put, this is a true and total disaster for the Dallas Cowboys. It may still be part of the negotiating of it all, but it may be a bridge that has been fully and totally burnt. It did not have to be this way.

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Barstool Sports

Normal Times: We Finally Got To The Point Where Micah Parsons Is Tweeting About ‘One Last Time’, Cowboys Fans Losing Their Shit

Ah, the Micah Parsons saga. You have Jerry and Stephen Jones being, well, Jerry and Stephen Jones. No idea why you’d be shocked that they are doing something stupid. There’s a reason this team hasn’t been to the NFC Championship game in nearly 30 years. They are a joke, a disaster and America’s favorite shitshow. And now, we finally got it to the next level:

Hell yes. This is the last piece to the contract drama. A little subtweet about it being the last ride, both Diggs and Parsons in a fight with the Cowboys and the rest of us can sit back and laugh. The real question is how long does this go on for?

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Big Blue View

Giants have league’s worst coach/coordinator combo — ESPN

In a ranking of all 32 NFL head coach/offensive and defensive coordinator combinations, Solak has the Daboll, Mike Kafka, Shane Bowen troika ranked last in the league. Yup. Last. Behind every team in the league that has a rookie head coach.

Ouch!

Solak insulted the Giants’ braintrust with this zinger:

I don’t really think any team has the 31st-best coaching staff in football (32nd I feel pretty good about). I just can’t submit several consecutive “tied for 20th” rankings.

Here are Solak’s full remarks about the Giants:

While the offensive brain trust of Daboll and Kafka has yet to string together multiple seasons of above-average offense, there are pockets of innovation. It’s not much to hang a hat on, but if and when we see Jaxson Dart this season at quarterback, I expect the team to have some smart, easy ways to get him into a rhythm and involved in the running game. I can at least see the visions in New York, even if the plane often struggles to get off the ground.

I have a warmer appreciation for Bowen, who is always willing to get creative with alignment and coverages to solve personnel problems on the back end. The 2024 Giants’ defense was definitely poor, but they have overhauled the secondary and added to the pass rush this offseason, so I’m happy reserving a stronger judgment for Year 2.

As it is, the best defensive season for Bowen was with the 2022 Titans, which was just above a league-average unit. Of course, Daboll’s best seasons came with the much-improved Josh Allen at the helm in Buffalo — otherwise, his best work was the 2022 season with Daniel Jones, which was also a league-average unit. And again, critically, was not sustained, developed or iterated on. It’s tough to believe in a high ceiling with the Giants’ current staff.

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NFL league links

Articles

Washington Post (paywall)

NFL is finalizing a deal to take a stake in ESPN, hand over RedZone

The Disney-owned network would receive RedZone and NFL Network if the deal is completed.

The NFL and ESPN are finalizing their long-awaited deal by which the Disney-owned sports network would receive league media properties, including NFL Network and RedZone, and the NFL is expected to receive an equity stake in ESPN, according to two people with knowledge of the deliberations.

Barring any last-minute complications, the deal could be officially completed and announced as soon as next week, according to those people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because no agreement has been announced. The Walt Disney Company is scheduled to announce its quarterly earnings Wednesday.

Those familiar with the deal described it as highly complex and said the remaining issues involved legal considerations related to governmental approvals. They characterized the deal as all but completed, with the finishing touches being applied.

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