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He hadn’t been getting the ball enough during a three-game losing streak, but the Washington Commanders had a new plan for Terry McLaurin in Week 13. It’s a plan the team’s best wide receiver took full advantage of to dominate the Tennessee Titans during a 42-19 win at Northwest Stadium.
McLaurin spoke with reporters after the game on Sunday, December 1 to explain how a key adjustment from offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury helped him snag eight receptions and score a pair of touchdowns.
The adjustment focused on moving McLaurin around. He gave the credit to Kingsbury and his staff, “for them to be able to move me around a little bit in the slot, to the right, I think it says a lot about our offensive staff just trying to put me in the best situations to be successful,” per Monumental Sports Network’s Ethan Cadeaux.
Doubling down on the theme, McLaurin said, “you definitely gotta give our offensive staff and Kliff credit for continuing to adjust, and it’s going to take that down the stretch.”
Although McLaurin also pointed he has “no problem, you know, being the guy who takes away the coverage for other guys to have success as well,” the Commanders are a better offense when No. 17 is catching passes from rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.
Terry McLaurin Adjustment Helped Jayden Daniels
Defenses taking away McLaurin was becoming a growing problem for Daniels. Opponents knew where Daniels’ go-to guy was going to be more often than not.
He was usually lined up left, outside the numbers, so defenses could simply roll double coverage to that side of the field on a regular basis. The Titans weren’t able to do that because Kingsbury kept them guessing about where Daniel’s favorite target would start a play, and the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NFL draft couldn’t have been happier.
Daniels admitted, “Obviously we want to get the ball to one of our better players as many times as possible, with the defense permitting that. It’s great to move Terry around,” per Cadeaux.
A roving brief for McLaurin can only be good news for Daniels. Letting his best weapon attack defenses from multiple spots creates play like this scoring connection against the Titans.
It was the first of McLaurin’s brace of touchdowns, giving him a career-high nine scores for the season. McLaurin can complete his most prolific campaign yet if he’s kept on the move during the final four games.
Commanders Must Add to Adjustments vs. Titans
Entering a bye week means Kingsbury will have extra time to refine the adjustments that got his offense back on track against the Tennessee. It helped to have workhorse running back Brian Robinson Jr., who rushed for 103 yards, in the lineup again, but Kingsbury provided a more balanced unit with some fresh concepts at the right time.
The play-caller had been under the spotlight during the losing run, when it looked as though defenses had figured out his system. Kingsbury needed to respond with something different and he wisely chose a new plan for McLaurin as his best answer to the critics.
More clever entries to the playbook will not only boost the Commanders’ offense for a late run to the playoffs. Those new concepts will also increase Kingsbury’s chances of landing another gig as a head coach, with the 45-year-old already linked to a potential move to the NFC North.
The Commanders would miss Kingsbury, but he could sign off in style by helping four-time 1,000-yard receiver McLaurin take his game up another level.
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