Terry McLaurin News: Not playing Saturday

McLaurin (contract) won't play in Saturday's preseason game against Baltimore, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.

McLaurin would be rested for the game even if he'd been active in training camp (rather than sitting out due to an ankle injury and contract dispute). The Commanders cleared him from a health standpoint Aug. 16, removing McLaurin from the PUP list, but it's unclear if he'll start practicing soon and where he stands with his prior trade request. He was present at practice Thursday, but merely as an observer in a hoodie. While he'll presumably need time to ramp up before playing, the larger concern right now is that McLaurin might consider skipping games due to displeasure with his contract. His trade request was widely seen as a sign of frustration, or a negotiating tactic, with reports suggesting the Commanders have no desire to trade him and McLaurin still prefers to stay in Washington (if he can get a contract he's happy with). It's incredibly rare nowadays for a player under contract to skip games, but that's something that needs to be considered at this point, if only as a fringe possibility.