The Washington Commanders added to their receiver room by signing veteran Van Jefferson. Here are five things to know about the wideout.

1. Football runs in the family.

Jefferson isn't the first person in his family to play in the NFL. His father, Shawn, also spent time in the league after a successful career at Central Florida.

Originally selected by the Houston Oilers in the 1991 draft, Shawn spent 13 years in the NFL, catching 470 passes for 7,023 yards and 29 touchdowns. Shawn had a journeyman's career in that span, spending time with the San Diego Chargers, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions. Some of his best performances came in the second half of his career; he hit career highs in receiving yards and yards per reception with the Patriots and grabbed 60 catches in 2000 with the Falcons.

Van has also done his rounds in the NFL. After getting drafted in the second round of the 2020 draft by the Los Angeles Rams, he was traded to the Falcons and spent the rest of the 2023 season there. He then signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024 and played in 16 games for the Tennessee Titans in 2025.

2. He was a solid player at Florida.

Jefferson's college career had winding paths to it as well. He originally committed to Georgia but later flipped to Ole Miss. He spent three seasons with the Rebels, including his redshirt freshman year, before transferring to Florida, where he closed out his college career.

Although it was only two seasons, Jefferson made his mark on the Gators' program. He led the team with 503 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 2018 and had 657 yards in 2019. In his final game with the program, which came against Virginia in the 2019 Orange Bowl, he caught six passes for 129 yards, helping the Gators take a 36-28 win.

In the four years he spent at the collegiate level, Jefferson made 175 receptions for 2,159 yards and 16 touchdowns.

3. His wife went into labor during the Super Bowl.

Jefferson had one of the best days of his life back in 2022. He and the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl following a 12-5 regular season finish, but more importantly, he welcomed one of his three sons into the world.

Here's the catch, though: his wife, Samaria Jefferson, went into labor during the game.

So, Jefferson didn't have much time to celebrate with his teammates, because as soon as the game was over, he had to rush to the hospital to be with his wife.

Jefferson's family and the Rams' support staff were told not to inform him during the game if Samaria went into labor. So, once the game was over, the Rams Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Joanna Hunter, rushed over to tell him the news. Jefferson rushed out of the stadium and to the hospital but had to watch Samaria give birth over FaceTime. He arrived just in time to have skin-to-skin contact with his newborn son, Champ.

Jefferson said the day was "a blur," and he still gets asked about it all the time. He doesn't mind it, though, because he likes to relive the memory.

"It was an experience that I'll never forget," Jefferson said. "It's something that was very special to me. I got the best of both worlds in one day."

4. He already has some familiarity with some of Washington's players.

Jefferson is used to new experiences with a team, as the Commanders are now his fifth squad, but the roster isn't completely unfamiliar to him. Two of the Commanders' players -- Treylon Burks and Chig Okonkwo -- were his teammates with the Tennessee Titans, and Jefferson had some high praise for the tight end.

"They're getting an explosive player," Jefferson said of the Commanders signing Okonkwo. "You see the YAC and what he can bring as a tight end. And he's also just a great person as well. People talk about the football player...but he's a great human being and an even better person. So, I'm excited to see him grow."

Okonkwo was one of the players the Commanders signed to provide Jayden Daniels with more weapons on offense. He was one of the Titans' most productive pieces over the last four seasons with at least 50 catches in the last three seasons, but the Commanders believe he has a higher ceiling with Daniels in the backfield.

And Jefferson is excited for him to get more opportunities.

"Once he gets the ball in his hands, he's looking to score," Jefferson said. "He's not gonna let the first person tackle him."

5. He's a highly efficient route runner.

Jefferson might not be considered a top-tier wide receiver, but he's found ways to stick around in the NFL. One of the main reasons teams keep signing him to rosters is that there are few players who can run better routes than him.

"He's the best," said wide receiver trainer Brandon White, who has worked with Tyreek Hill, Stefon Diggs, Justin Jefferson and several other receivers at his "Receiver Factory." "Van can pretty much do anything and run any route out there."

Jefferson's father, Shawn, can take credit for that. Now a receivers coach for the New York Jets, Shawn instilled the importance of running clean routes at an early age. He passed along tips he taught players like Calvin Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins on to his son, and Van still works on running his routes every offseason.

"My dad was always on my tail and always on me about those things, just about the technique and the little details so that was important for me," Van said. "That's something that I work on all the time and try to be the best at."

The Commanders have multiple young receivers on their roster and could add more in the draft, and they could learn a few things from Jefferson this summer. There's no guarantee that Jefferson will be on the roster during the season, but the time he spends with them could be valuable for their future development.