Commanders not panicking about McLaurin's lack of early usage originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
ASHBURN, Va. — The last three years have proven the Washington Commanders have a true No. 1 wide receiver in Terry McLaurin. Yet, the fourth-year veteran — who just inked a three-year, $71 million contract extension this past July — has been a non-factor during the first half in each of the Burgundy and Gold’s first three games of the 2022 season.
In Week 1, McLaurin had just one catch in the first half of Jacksonville. In Detroit, McLaurin’s first catch came on the first drive of the second half. Then last week against Philadelphia, No. 17 registered just one target, one that was uncatchable, before halftime.
Obviously, that’s not how the Commanders envision using McLaurin moving forward. But the 26-year-old’s lack of first-half production is not something the Commanders are worried about moving forward, though.
“I don’t think it’s anything that we want to overreact on,” quarterback Carson Wentz said Wednesday. “There’s plays for him; there’s plays for each guy. We haven’t executed them well, yet, but I’m very confident in getting him and the other guys involved more early, especially if we can execute a little bit better early on. I don’t think it’s anything we want to panic about or force the issue on, because I know he’ll get his.”
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Although Wentz — and the Commanders as a whole — aren’t concerned about McLaurin’s lack of early usage, it’s certainly been a topic of conversation in Ashburn. McLaurin said he spoke individually with the offensive coordinator Scott Turner about what’s transpired thus far, with the goal to find ways for him to make an impact earlier in the game.
McLaurin called his talk with Turner a “personal conversation,” but said the offensive coordinator made it clear to him it’s a high priority to get him and the rest of Washington’s offensive weapons involved earlier in the game. McLaurin said he’s focused on controlling what he can control, confident opportunities will come his way early on in the near future.
“I just try to be ready for my opportunities when they do come,” McLaurin said. “Obviously, you want to get involved as early as possible. Any time I can impact the game as early as possible, that’s what I want to do. Coach Turner and Carson know that as well. At the same time, sometimes those plays don’t come up as early as you would want.”
For a player of McLaurin’s caliber, it would be understandable if he went to Turner this week and demanded more targets. Star wideouts across the league do such when they feel they aren’t getting enough opportunities.
“I feel like every receiver wants the ball as many times as they want,” McLaurin said. “That’s myself included.”
Being one to demand targets is not McLaurin’s approach, though. It never has been, even dating back to his Ohio State days. Having played multiple roles throughout his college career, McLaurin adopted the mindset of being a team-first player, something that hasn’t changed even as he’s risen to stardom as a professional.
“I really care about winning, too. If that means me getting the ball X amount of times and [that] helps us win the game, then I’m all for it,” McLaurin said. “If that means someone else being involved or we’re running the ball effectively, I’m down for that, too. Really just my mentality is not trying to focus on how many times I’m getting the ball or demanding it, necessarily, just being ready when the ball comes to me because if you’re not ready, that’s when you miss those opportunities.”
Although McLaurin hasn’t had many opportunities early in games thus far in 2022, he’s certainly made the most of his chances in the second half of each contest.
In Week 1, McLaurin came up big when the Commanders needed it most, pulling in a 49-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. In Week 2, he caught four passes for 75 yards, including an impressive 35-yard sliding grab. Then last week, McLaurin hauled in six passes from Wentz over the final 30 minutes for 102 yards, his first time topping the century mark this year.
Yes, it’s worth mentioning that the Commanders trailed by multiple possessions entering the second half in both Week 2 and Week 3. Still, when given opportunities to make plays, McLaurin has come through — evident by his second-half production over the past two weeks.
Wentz believes McLaurin’s second-half production has been a result of the offensive finally executing plays. Whereas in the first half, the unit has come out flat all around. Washington’s QB1 then went on to reiterate that no one in Ashburn is worried about McLaurin’s lack of first-half production and that things will change moving forward.
“We’ve seen what he’s still able to do. We all know who we have out there and the special guy we have,” Wentz said. “Whether it’s early on, middle of the game, or late in the game, we’ll know he’ll show up, he’ll make his plays. The hope is to get him going earlier because that means we’re rolling better earlier. Hopefully, we can do that.”
The first chance for Wentz and McLaurin to turn things around comes this weekend in Dallas against a Cowboys defense that’s been one of the league’s best over the first three weeks. The Cowboys currently lead the NFL in sacks with 13, something that doesn’t bode well for the Commanders after Wentz was brought down nine times this past Sunday in Philadelphia.
On the outside, McLaurin will be matched up against cornerback Trevon Diggs, who earned All-Pro honors a season ago after recording an NFL-best 11 interceptions. McLaurin got the better of Diggs when the two matched up in 2020, but the Cowboys cornerback held Washington’s star without a catch when they lined up against one another last season.
After spending this past Sunday battling against Eagles star Darius Slay, McLaurin is looking forward to another difficult test this week against a familiar foe in Diggs.
“When you’re going up against another great player, it forces you to raise up your level,” McLaurin said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge, like I am every year. Hopefully, I’ll get some 1-on-1 opportunities to attack him and get involved early. I have a lot of respect for him and his game. They trust him to travel with the top receivers. I’m looking forward to that matchup.”
