If you aren’t Seahawks, keep DK Metcalf’s name out of your mouth

It seems that virtually every quarterback not wearing a Seahawks jersey is recruiting DK Metcalf. On behalf of all 12s, I respectfully say: keep the man’s name out of your mouth.

Lamar Jackson is the latest in the parade of quarterbacks around the NFL that want DK Metcalf to jump to their team. Virtually every fan site has published an article about how great their team would be if they added Metcalf. Well, count as me surprised. I had no idea DK Metcalf was any good. Except for when I pointed out that he’d have a rookie season that would match almost any Hall of Fame player.

As all good little 12s can recite from memory, the wee little rookie DK Metcalf had 58 catches for 900 yards and 7 touchdowns. By the way, that’s better than the rookie campaign of Megatron, known in some circles as Calvin Johnson, who “only” had 758 yards on 48 catches and four TDs. Johnson assumed his true form of Megatron in his sophomore season, with over 1,300 yards and a dozen scores.

In comparison, DK slacked off with – oops, he had over 1,300 yards too, although he “only” had 10 touchdowns. Megatron dropped off a bit in his third season, as did Metcalf. Except that DK scored twelve TDs compared to Johnson’s five.

DK Metcalf can create a legacy with the Seahawks

So what’s my point in bringing up an old comparison? I wrote then that DK Metcalf didn’t have to be the Seahawks savior. All he had to do was be himself, and all the 12s would be happy. He has certainly been himself – calamari with ranch, anyone? As it turns out, he may well be the savior of the Seahawks as well.

Here’s the thing about Calvin Johnson and DK Metcalf. Megatron didn’t always have the greatest talent around him. The Lions went 7-9 his rookie season, and his quarterback was a fellow who should be familiar to you, a guy by the name of Jon Kitna. Kitna was a good QB, but at the age of 35, he wasn’t exactly an All-Pro, either.

Things got worse for the Lions in Johnson’s second season, as the Lions tried everyone but me at QB in 2008. Both Dan Orlovsky and the nearly done Daunte Culpepper got more starts than Kitna. This was the infamous 0-16 edition of the Lions, for those keeping score. Considering the quarterbacks, it’s a miracle that Johnson ever scored, let alone became the legitimately feared Megatron.

Ah, but things began to look up in 2009. Some kid named Matthew Stafford showed up and was immediately given the starting gig. While he missed six games, he did manage to get the Lions two wins. Over the next six seasons, Stafford and Johnson would connect for 62 touchdowns and a league full of burned defensive backs.

This brings me back to the esteemed DK Metcalf. He’s in the final year of his rookie contract, and the Seahawks have a big decision to make, much as the Lions did when Johnson’s contract was up. Detroit knew that to have any chance to stay competitive, they needed to keep their best player on the team.

The Lions handed Johnson a contract worth $113 million, $53 million of that guaranteed. That was ten years ago; considering that the biggest contracts for wide receivers even now are in that same range, it shows how much Detroit valued their star receiver.

Yes, it will take a lot, and I mean a lot of money to keep DK Metcalf with the Seahawks. Davante Adams signed for five years and $140 million to go to Vegas. Tyreek Hill signed with Miami for four years and $120 million. Not only did he get a higher average salary, but a whopping $52.5 million was guaranteed at signing. So yes, it’s going to cost a lot to keep DK in Seattle, and it should.

By the way, Lamar Jackson is a free agent after the 2022 season. His current deal is ranked 36th in the league and totals less than $10 million. That’s almost exactly half of Case Keenum’s deal. Carson Wentz’s total contract is $128 million and Jimmy Garrapalo is making $137.5 million. Lamar probably wants a little more than those stiffs. The Ravens, if they were able to make a trade for DK Metcalf, would either let Jackson walk next year or have zero money left for a team to put around their two stars. Nice try, Lamar. Metcalf is set up for success right here with the Seahawks. Now, what are the chances we can get Jon Kitna to come back?