News broke during Tuesday’s Grant & Danny Show that Terry McLaurin had signed a massive three-year extension with the Commanders, and you can get their live reaction below.
Later in the show, the boys got a surprise call on the listener line: Commanders defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, aka “Jon in Ashburn,” who called the show in the middle of a round of golf to let everyone know how happy he was for McLaurin – and the message the extension sends to the team – and you can listen to that below as well.
Then, they got ANOTHER call: Charles Leno Jr., the Commanders’ starting left tackle, joined the show (this time, planned), and Leno was just as excited as Allen was earlier on.
“The first time I saw Terry I was with Chicago in 2019, and we won the game, but we were like, ‘who is this guy torching our defense?’” Leno remembered. “We knew he was going to be damn good, and now here as his teammate, I couldn’t be happier.”
And like Allen, Leno pointed to McLaurin’s character off the field as a big reason he is a big part of the Commanders’ culture.
“You talk about football and that’s very important, but he’s an incredible person and human being, and that’s what you want in the building – an exceptional player who is an exceptional teammate too,” Leno said. “The way he tracks the ball, his speed, and his work ethic – he’s never one of those guys you have to worry about because he’s always in the building. You have to take care of business, but I’m thankful he got it done and we can get back to work.”
McLaurin is only entering his fourth year, but he’s already a locker room leader for the Commanders, which will be important this year with another new quarterback and a young receiving corps.
“He’s just himself when it comes to being a leader,” Leno said. “You show up, work hard every day, and say what you need to say what you have to, and the rest takes care of itself. We have a really young group in the receivers room, and he can keep those guys together.”
And once again, as Allen did, Leno noted that football aside, paying someone with the character and talent of McLaurin sends a big message to the team, and the fans, about the future.
“People look at what type of person you are, and when you have a person who has the talent, the work ethic, and character he has, you want to reward those guys, have them on your team, and have someone for the fans to care about,” Leno said.