No Terry McLaurin? No problem!

AtoZ Sports

Josh Taylor discusses the Washington Commanders wide receivers with Terry McLaurin absent from mini camp!

Transcript

00:00Washington Commanders General Manager Adam Peters said he fully expected Terry McLaurin to show up to training camp.

00:05Well, the first day came and there was only one person not present, and that was Terry McLaurin.

00:10So what does that mean for the rest of the team, and more specifically, the wide receiver room as training camp goes on?

00:17Let's talk about it.

00:21I'm Josh Taylor with A to Z Sports Commanders, and we officially have a holdout in Ashburn, Virginia,

00:27as all-pro Terry McLaurin is not participating in training camp as he's waiting for that contract extension.

00:34So that's something we're going to watch.

00:35But in the meantime, we still have some on-the-field activities to talk about,

00:39and who's going to step up in the wide receiver room with Terry McLaurin not present at practice?

00:44Now, of course, Washington traded for Debo Samuel in the offseason,

00:47and he's instantly going to become Jaden Daniels' top option until Terry does show up to practice.

00:52And it didn't take long to see how that connection's going with Jaden Daniels finding Debo

00:57on a touchdown over-the-shoulder throw, the very first throw of practice.

01:02That is how you get things going.

01:04That's how you kick things off as your second season in the league if you're Jaden Daniels.

01:08And for Debo, he has a point to prove this season.

01:11This is a guy that everyone's already written off and saying he's washed.

01:15He's betting on himself with the contract that he has here in Washington,

01:18and he's fighting for a long-term deal after the season.

01:21Then you have veteran Noah Brown, who caught the Hail Mary, became famous in Washington fan base,

01:27but he avoided a major injury during mini-camp, and he should be good to go.

01:32Dan Quinn said, of course, they're going to be careful with his injury and kind of ramp things up with him,

01:36but you're still going to see him out there in training camp building that rapport with Jaden Daniels,

01:40and it's nice to have some more veteran presence in that wide receiver room

01:44and already having that connection with Jaden going into his second season.

01:47But then you have the young core of this team, Luke McCaffrey, going into his second season.

01:53Now, we know he's a great athlete, but what does he look like as a wide receiver?

01:57Can he refine some of those skill sets?

01:59And Dan Quinn said, not even just for Luke, but in general, that second season,

02:04this is where you see the biggest jump in development from players.

02:08You had that rookie season in the NFL.

02:10You can put that under your belt.

02:11You know what to expect now.

02:13You can address those things in the offseason that you really wanted to work on.

02:17And then, of course, they drafted Jalen Lane, who I think was underutilized at Virginia Tech

02:21and has a true potential to be a starting wide receiver for Washington,

02:26but then also be the starter on special teams.

02:28He was the best punt returner in the draft, is what Adam Peters said, and I agree with him.

02:33I think this guy's got speed that's missing at the wide receiver position from Washington,

02:37and he can start, and the special teams need a spark as well.

02:40So you have two younger guys who might be competing against each other,

02:43whether it is on the outside or that starting slot position,

02:46and that's the kind of competition I want to see.

02:49You have some veterans that are fighting for their spots,

02:51but then you also have these young bucks that want to earn their respect as well.

02:54But then you also had two name drops from Coach Quinn that kind of surprised me,

02:58with Chris Moore and K.J. Osborne.

03:01I know, that's a shocking two names to hear from Coach Quinn,

03:04but he said, look, these are two guys that we signed during the season last year.

03:09They didn't get that offseason with us.

03:11They didn't get to learn the systems and spend time with Jaden Daniels.

03:15They just kind of showed up late and were just there.

03:17They didn't get the opportunities.

03:19Now, he's been impressed with what he's seen from both of those guys,

03:21and honestly, I've heard both of their names a bunch,

03:24whether it was OTAs or minicamp or even now starting out at training camp

03:27from Jaden and the coaching staff.

03:29But now they have the actual opportunity to compete at training camp,

03:33learn the systems, get that connection and trust with Jaden Daniels,

03:37Tariq can be fighting from one of those final spots.

03:40But right behind them is one of the famous undrafted rookies.

03:44Washington fans love this guy, and they should, Ja'Cory Brooks.

03:48Everyone wants to hear about Ja'Cory Brooks.

03:50What's he going to do at practice?

03:51I think he's going to be one of the names you hear a bunch.

03:54He's one of the guys I've highlighted in articles on A to Z Sports

03:57of guys that I think have something to prove,

04:00and they have the opportunity to win that last final roster spot

04:03at the wide receiver position.

04:04And on the first day, it wasn't just Debo making noise.

04:08Ja'Cory Brooks had two touchdowns,

04:10one from Jaden Daniels and one from Marcus Mariota.

04:14So he's wasting no time.

04:15He's like, look, guys, I'm not here to just watch

04:17and, you know, be just some underdog story.

04:20I have some dog in me, and he does.

04:22He's got really great hands,

04:24and he has late hands for those contested catches and deep balls,

04:27and he has a great tracking ability as well.

04:29He doesn't have the fastest 40 time,

04:31but like I said, that's fine.

04:32As long as he can track those deep balls

04:35and earn that connection with Jaden,

04:37he's clearly got something.

04:38I mean, he's already gotten two touchdowns

04:40in the first day of practice.

04:41So don't be surprised when you hear Ja'Cory Brooks' name called

04:44when it comes down to the final cuts.

04:47So yes, Terry McLaurin not being at practice sucks.

04:50I know we're all waiting for a new deal to get done with Terry,

04:53but still, let's look at the light at the end of the tunnel.

04:56This gives some other guys,

04:57whether they're new veterans or rookies

04:59or guys that just needed more time with Jaden Daniels

05:02and Marcus Mariota,

05:04this gives them more time to earn those reps

05:06and get that system down

05:08and just really hone their craft with the quarterbacks.

05:10They're going to have every opportunity in the world

05:12with joint practices coming up,

05:14and then, of course, the preseason is right around the corner.

05:16So who are some of the names that you're keeping an eye on

05:18as training camp progresses,

05:20and who do you think ultimately comes out

05:22with one of those final roster spots?

05:24I'm Josh Taylor.

05:25See y'all next time.

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