Acquiring another prolific weapon for quarterback Jayden Daniels was high on the Washington Commanders' list of objectives this offseason. Adam Peters struck with conviction to land wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. via trade from the San Francisco 49ers.
The compensation attached — a fifth-round pick and nothing more — represented a low-risk move with incredible upside attached. Samuel is explosive and versatile, bringing Pro Bowl-caliber production alongside Terry McLaurin. With Daniels leading the charge under center and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury calling plays, the ingredients are there for another exceptional campaign in 2025.
This trade was met with widespread approval around the league. The Commanders are a tremendous landing spot for Samuel, who'll be highly motivated to embrace a fresh challenge in an ascending organization with lofty ambitions. The fact he's also in a contract year lends further weight to this notion.
Calvin Johnson Jr. lauds Commanders' bold trade for Deebo Samuel Sr.
Add Calvin Johnson Jr. to the list of those who believe Samuel and the Commanders are a match made in heaven. The Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver thought Washington's offense could be scary with the pieces now in place. He added during an appearance on the Up and Adams Show that Daniels has two genuine No. 1 options to call upon — a strategy adopted by the division rival Philadelphia Eagles en route to lifting the Super Bowl.
"It's great for the Commanders. What they already had there in Scary Terry — to be able to have two veteran receivers who know how to make plays, know how to get open, and run after the catch. If Deebo [Samuel] comes into camp and is extremely fit coming into this year, I mean, I don't know what they can't do. The defense obviously, you continue to tighten that up, but their offense man, they have a scary offense. They've got two basically number-one receivers out there."Calvin Johnson Jr.
.@calvinjohnsonjr reacts to the Deebo Samuel-Commanders trade...
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) March 3, 2025
"They got a SCARY offense... You got basically two no. 1 receivers." 😱@heykayadams @19problemz@Commanders | #RaiseHail pic.twitter.com/Wh8ruhY6WI
Samuel wants to prove his down year in 2024 was a blip rather than the start of a concerning slump to irrelevancy. Peters believes he's still got plenty of good football left. Considering how many screens Kingsbury ran last season, this has the makings of an exceptional scheme fit.
If it doesn't work out, the Commanders aren't on the hook for anything more than this season financially. Besides, a fifth-round pick isn't much to give up to find out one way or another if the former second-rounder out of South Carolina has some more juice in the tank.
Washington came within one game of the Super Bowl last season. They have holes to fill in pursuit of going one better next time around. At the same time, someone with the big-game experience Samuel brings to the franchise gets them a lot closer.
Johnson is one of the greatest receivers of the modern era. If he believes this fledgling partnership between Samuel and McLaurin will excel, that should be good enough for fans who remain skeptical. But honestly, most concerns diminished once the trade compensation became public knowledge.
And the fact he's closely tied to the Detroit Lions shows how much this trade is striking fear into Washington's conference rivals in the NFC.
Samuel would make any team better. Fortunately for the Commanders, they had the cash and connections to jump the queue.