During wide receiver Terry McLaurin’s extended push for a new contract this offseason, one of the reasons cited for the Commanders’ possible reluctance to a long-term commitment was his age.
McLaurin turns 30 in mid-September and that ultimately didn’t stop the team from agreeing to a three-year extension with the wideout. At a press conference on Wednesday, McLaurin was asked about his response to concerns that neither he nor the deal will age well.
McLaurin acknowledged the data that shows a dropoff for receivers after 30, but noted he’s in his seventh season and that he didn’t play an onerous number of reps in college as well as a strong record of health in the NFL while explaining why he thinks he’ll keep producing.
“The data is the data, but I think certain people — there’s outliers, there’s people who may not necessarily fit into that set of data,” McLaurin said. “Only time will tell, but I feel like where things are tending an my ability — in January I ran like a 60-yard screen for a touchdown. My speed hasn’t diminished at all. My toughness is there. If anything, my savviness of playing receiver has grown.”
The Commanders appear to agree with McLaurin about what the near future will hold and they’ll be hoping that Week 1 brings reminders of what McLaurin is capable of doing with that speed, toughness, and savviness.
