Commanders' Samuel: 'I still got a lot in the tank'

Washington Commanders wide receiver Deebo Samuel is ready to showcase he's still a legitimate offensive threat heading into his first season with his new team.

"Yeah, I still got a lot in the tank," Samuel said when asked if he has something to prove this year. "I just go out here and get better every day. Whatever position they put me at to go out here and make plays, I'm going to do the best of my ability."

The San Francisco 49ers traded Samuel to the Commanders for a fifth-round pick this offseason. Samuel and Washington agreed to a reworked contract after the trade that will see the wideout make $17 million this campaign. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent following this season.

The 29-year-old is coming off arguably the worst year of his career, totaling only 51 catches for 670 yards and three touchdowns. His 40.7% receiving success rate and 44.7 receiving yards per contest were both his worst in a single season. He didn't have a single game with more than 100 receiving yards after Week 6.

Samuel dealt with pneumonia during a Week 7 contest against the Kansas City Chiefs, which hospitalized him for a few days. The wideout added that he didn't start feeling more like himself until near the conclusion of the campaign.

"Kind of probably towards the end where I kind of got my breathing back and felt like normal. Coming off pneumonia, it's kind of hard to breathe, so it's kind of hard to build that capacity back up but towards the end of the year I felt fine."

The South Carolina product is projected to be one of the go-to targets for quarterback Jayden Daniels. Terry McLaurin, who is Washington's No. 1 wide receiver, is currently not practicing due to a contract dispute with the team.

Samuel has 5,935 total yards and 42 touchdowns in 81 career contests.