Terry McLaurin’s touchdown grab in Sunday’s win made history: it was his 12th of the season, tying him with four others – most recently Ricky Sanders in 1988 – for the most in a single season in franchise history.
He also went over 1,000 yards for the fifth straight season, setting a new franchise record, and one more TD this year could make him undisputedly the best wideout of all-time here in DC.
“I thank God, honestly; without him, I wouldn't be in this position to continue to play at a high level and live out my dream with this group,” McLaurin told Craig Hoffman in an exclusive locker room interview after the game. “I'm having the time of my career right now, just playing with such a group of unselfish guys who are competitors and care about putting the work in each and every week. They push me to come out and be the best version of myself each and every practice and each and every game, and the way they rally around me and we rally around each other I think is something that I haven't experienced at this level. So, to have a piece of the record, I'm thankful. I've seen it all at this point, so to have my name right next to so many great legend receivers in this organization, I don’t even have the words.”
McLaurin didn’t immediately know that he had tied the TD record and set a new record for 1,000-yard seasons until after the game, but as he said, the history of the organization makes those mean even more.
“It’s just cool, like, I've gotten to meet a lot of the great receivers that came through here, and just the respect that I have for them and the way they paved the way, to get kind of the nod of the hat from them when I meet them, it means a lot to me,” McLaurin said. “I just want to be a great example of resilience and consistency, and be a leader on and off the field that guys could look up to and be proud, like, ‘he's on our team.’”
And a nice honor for McLaurin, who has been on five previous Commanders teams that never finished above 8-8-1, even if they did win a division title in that forgettable 2020 season, and had a lot more dysfunction than wins.
“I feel extremely valued here, from my opinion off the field talking to AP and DQ to being on the field talking to Kliff; like, on that touchdown, he was like, ‘what do you like?’ And I told him, and he called it,” McLaurin said. “That's not happened once, it's happened multiple times, and moving me around over the course of the season has definitely helped us as well. So to feel like you're in a place where you love the culture, you have a great quarterback you feel like you could build with, it makes me excited. To be a part of this with this group is amazing, and it makes it that much sweeter to have this success because you're doing it with a group of people who care about putting the work in and being competitive.”
Again, something McLaurin thinks it’s nice to finally see organization-wide.
“That’s what I’ve always been, and unfortunately the chips don't always fall your way in that aspect, but I feel like I'm in an environment that cultivates and breeds that each and every week, so I feel I can truly be myself and get my opinion heard,” he said. “I can truly just be present each and every day and know things are gonna work out, so it's taken a lot of pressure off. I've been able to relax a lot going into games because I know I'm gonna get my opportunities and I know that they believe in me, and they're gonna put me in a situation to be successful. I just thank God that I finally feel like I've been able to maximize my skill set – and playing with Jayden makes it a lot easier.”
Over the next two weeks, McLaurin can set the TD record, and perhaps even establish new career highs in catches and yards - but more importantly, the Commanders can win 11 or 12 for the first time since the 14-2 1991 Super Bowl Champions did it, and get their first playoff berth under their new name.
“I’m looking forward to finishing strong. My sole focus is on Atlanta this week, because they’re a good team that's fighting for the playoffs, and we want to be playing at a standard of ball that helps us get into the playoffs and have success going forward,” he said. “One thing I've learned just playing football in general is you have a lot of individual success when the team has success, and I'm reaping the benefits of that. I'm just looking forward to continue to put the work in and see how far we can go, and I think we just proved that we can compete with the best. It's up to us to minimize the mistakes, and I just want to try to continue to be the best version of myself for this team. If the record happens, it happens, but honestly, I'm just really excited to have a chance to go into the playoffs and go deep with this group, and we'll see going from here.”