Is Terry McLaurin Worth an Investment?
It’s been a rough start to the season for the Redskins. There weren’t many people standing by a potential playoff push, but the team’s 0-3 start has to be crushing nonetheless. Dwayne Haskins has yet to play a single snap while Case Keenum is coming off a brutal three-interception game against the Bears defense.
On offense, there are a few pieces that work, but nothing like 2015 or 2016 when Washington had DeSean Jackson, Pierre Garcon, Jamison Crowder, and Jordan Reed. Paul Richardson is fine but not a typical WR1 you’d invest in. Adrian Peterson has his moments but is far from the elite talent he used to be. Chris Thompson is a fine receiving back but the offense does not form the game plan around his talents.
So as you can see, the Redskins are not exactly a dynasty farm many dynasty players are willing to invest in. However, there is one receiver on this unit who should very well entice anyone looking for a young dynasty star in the making.
Third-round rookie wideout Terry McLaurin has been a pleasant surprise through the early mark of the 2019 season for the Redskins. He broke out against the Eagles in week one with five catches for 125 yards and a touchdown and since then he’s earned the nickname “Scary Terry.”
In the three games he’s played in 2019, McLaurin has caught 16 passes for 257 yards (16.1 yards per reception) and three touchdowns, catching a TD pass in all three games he’s played. Coincidentally, he’s also started all three games, impressive for a third-round rookie.
In terms of fantasy data, McLaurin is actually the eighth-highest scoring fantasy WR of 2019 thus far with 43.7 fantasy points. He only trails Keenan Allen, Julio Jones, Sammy Watkins, Amari Cooper, Mike Evans, DJ Chark, and John Ross, once again impressive for a rookie!
The Ohio State prospect wasn’t highly looked upon when it came to potential first-round receivers, but he’s emerged as one of the starters on this Washington receiving corps. The question is: is he worth a dynasty investment? Well if his tape is of any indication, the answer is yes, especially since no one else on the corps is really competing for any of McLaurin’s shares.
Take McLaurin’s first career touchdown, at Philadelphia, for example.
McLaurin is already establishing himself as a deep threat. His speed was evident at the NFL combine, as he ran a 4.35-second 40-yard dash, just .02 seconds slower than Mecole Hardman’s and .04 seconds slower than Parris Campbell’s.
Here he turns on the jets on a simple post route, and Case Keenum drops this in the bucket, allowing McLaurin to outrace the corner for a spectacular touchdown play.
Just for fun, let’s take a look at the replay angle.
Nothing short of marvelous.
On this play, McClaurin is covered well but manages to turn an errant throw from Keenum into a spectacular highlight-reel catch. For more on that, let’s look at the replay below.
This play should have been an easy interception, but McLaurin’s strong hands and concentration reel this one in before Ronald Darby can.
Not every McLaurin play has been successful, and this has more to do with Keenum leaving plays on the field than anything else.
McLaurin’s blazing fast speed gets him past the Eagles secondary yet again, but Keenum fires way too far this time. That’s a shame because the Redskins trailed by less than a touchdown at this point, so this would have given them the lead again.
This play against the Cowboys is similar. Keenum doesn’t appear to expect McLaurin to cut a little inside, which might explain why the throw is off-target. Fortunately for him, McLaurin knocks away a potential interception by playing DB on this play. Still, this is a potential explosive play gone down the gutter.
All things considered, Terry McLaurin is a talented deep threat who is worth an investment. In a season where the Redskins are not expected to do much damage in the NFC, Scary Terry is a huge bright spot for this offense. He’s playing a similar role former Washington deep burner DeSean Jackson had, and the offense appears to be taking advantage of the rookie’s speed demon habits. That means you should as well.
It’s unlikely that McLaurin is available in a typical dynasty waiver right now since he’s most likely been taken, but if you can get him in a possible trade, depending on what you have to offer, it’ll be great worth for your fantasy team. He has terrific speed, solid route running, some fine ball skills, and seems to be on his way to becoming the Redskins WR1 at this point, a position he could very well claiming for a while.
With a skill set that excites and the potential to do even more damage, I would not hesitate to invest in Terry McLaurin.
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