The Dallas Cowboys got the better of Dan Quinn in Week 12 in what turned out to be one of the craziest games of the 2024 NFL season. However, Quinn ultimately got the last laugh as the Commanders made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game in his first year as head coach.
The arrow is undoubtedly pointing up for Washington going into this season, but they are currently doing their best Cowboys impression as far as isolating one of the faces of their franchise.
Star wide receiver Terry McLaurin has been holding out for a new contract and he told reporters on Tuesday that he's "frustrated and disappointed" with the lack of progress.
While McLaurin wants to stay in Washington, he made it clear that he won't step on the field until he signs on the dotted line. This has forced Quinn to play peacemaker as tensions between McLaurin and the Commanders' front office reach a potential boiling point.
Cowboys fans can only laugh as Commanders refuse to pay star WR Terry McLaurin
Per Bleacher Report insider James Palmer, McLaurin has kept a consistent flow of communication with Quinn throughout his holdout. The same seemingly cannot be said about McLaurin and general manager Adam Peters, as Palmer noted that negotiations have not made it off the ground.
"... Dan Quinn has stayed in constant contact with Terry McLaurin throughout this offseason, Palmer said. "It hasn't been contentious in that sense, to the extent that he's separate from the organization. Is there distance, is there frustration here as well? Certainly. Did they make any headway throughout the entire month of June? My understanding… no, they really didn't, and they were pretty far apart in making any sort of progress."
It doesn't sound like the Commanders want to trade McLaurin. McLaurin himself is not angling for a trade. He simply wants an extension that reflects his production off the field and impact off of it.
What we can't put our finger on, though, is why a deal hasn't happened yet. While we can say the same about Micah Parsons and Tyler Smith, that is how Jerry Jones operates. Star quarterback Jayden Daniels is set to make just $2.5 million this season and Washington released longtime defensive lineman Jonathan Allen in March.
They currently rank 17th in cap space, but a McLaurin extension likely wouldn't kick in until next season, when they're projected to have the sixth-most cap space at $59.74 million.
Nothing about it makes sense, especially since new owner Josh Harris has hardly put a foot wrong since he presided over the franchise.
For the Cowboys sake, let's hope McLaurin's holdout drags all the way into September.
