Texans wide receiver Tank Dell was one of the NFL's hottest rookies last season until he went down with an injury.
The 24-year-old registered 47 catches for 709 yards and seven touchdowns, which was among the rookie leaders at the time, before suffering a fractured fibula in Week 13 that would keep him sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Dell's unluckiness didn't stop there, either. He also suffered a gunshot wound in April.
Although Dell has been participating in Houston's offseason workouts, his recent injuries have left everyone wondering if he will be able to return to the same level of play this season.
He believes he'll be better.
"I'm way better," Dell said, via Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston. "I feel like I'm way better than I was last year at this time. The little bit of experience I got before I got injured, I already know the playbook. So I don't have to put too much stress on that. I'm just working every day. I know I'm ready."
That, of course, is expected for most second-year players, but Dell knows what the Texans are building is special.
This offseason, the team added several key players such as running back Joe Mixon, wide receiver Stefon Diggs and edge-rusher Danielle Hunter.
The addition of Diggs does make the wide receiver room a bit more crowded as he also joins the likes of Nico Collins, Robert Woods, Noah Brown and John Metchie III.
However, Dell has championship aspirations on his mind.
"We ready," Dell added. "We're all excited. We know we have a target on our back. We got a lot of things we want to accomplish: Super Bowl, playoffs, things like that. So we're ready to go work."
If Dell can stay healthy throughout the 2024 season, he should put up better numbers than last year, but fans shouldn't expect any outrageous numbers with several playmakers looking to be fed early and often.
