ASHBURN, VA − The 2025 NFL regular season is underway, two of its 272 games already in the books – both involving teams, the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, which met in Super Bowl 59.
But while there’s little doubt those outfits will again be bona fide contenders leading up to Super Bowl 60, other clubs presumed to be relevant might be displaying early cracks and perhaps be especially vulnerable to a wider variance of seasonal outcomes (aside from the unpredictable catastrophic injuries that can change any organization’s trajectory). Some squads are already nicked up, while others are hoping that the business of football hasn’t infringed too far into the field of play.
One that needed most of the summer to resolve a pressing financial matter was the Washington Commanders, an NFC title game entry in January but one that couldn’t meet team captain Terry McLaurin’s contractual demands until late August. Now, McLaurin and the team are hoping he won’t become one of the holdouts – or holdins nowadays – who might be more prone to soft tissue injuries in September after missing the bulk of or all of training camp.
“(T)here's a difference between being in shape, football shape, and then game shape, you know what I mean?” McLaurin asked rhetorically after signing a three-year extension last week that could pay him up to $97 million.
