49ers' Deebo Samuel sends warning to other Super Bowl contenders

Dual-threat offensive weapon Deebo Samuel delivered a warning to other advertised Super Bowl contenders as his 11-3 San Francisco 49ers sit atop the overall NFC standings. 

"We always been right at the door, and what is it going to take for us to get over that hump? And we always had that taste in our mouth, like, 'Bro, what is it? What is it?' And as we continue to stack these days, stack these games, stack these wins, we still not playing to our best potential and still leaving stuff out there on the field," Samuel said during a Tuesday appearance on the FanDuelTV "Up & Adams" program, as shared by David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone.

The 49ers endured NFC Championship Game defeats across the previous two postseasons. Most recently, San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy went down with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow during this past January's conference title game loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. 

Purdy currently is healthy, and both he and 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey are widely viewed as Most Valuable Player candidates for the ongoing season. On Tuesday, Samuel explained how head coach Kyle Shanahan does well to appreciate victories and keep everybody focused on the fact that the 49ers are pursuing more than just another trip to the playoffs. 

"Kyle is definitely going to celebrate the win," Samuel remarked. "But at the end of the day, after celebrating, after he's given us a speech along the lines of how good we played ... he still lets us know there's things that still need to be worked on."

As of Tuesday afternoon, oddschecker listed San Francisco as the betting favorite at +100 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LVIII and as the favorite at +240 odds to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy in February. For now, the 49ers will attempt to reach their "best potential" when they host the 11-3 Baltimore Ravens on Christmas night.