DK Metcalf being at Seahawks camp shows he’s a team player
By Lee Vowell
Seahawks training camp is underway and one of the potential dramas has been lessened. DK Metcalf won’t practice but is at least at camp.
I personally wouldn’t care if Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf wasn’t in the final year of his current deal, had 6 years left on his contract, came to camp and didn’t partake in every on-field drill. Every on-field drill that Metcalf does is one more useless opportunity for an injury. So let me get that thought out of the way.
Is practice important? Of course. Metcalf will get in some practice at some point. But this early in training camp it is more important to see how the rookies are working out and the quarterbacks getting their reps. Metcalf is a proven commodity.
Why DK Metcalf coming to Seahawks training camp is so important
When former players say Metcalf is making a “business decision,” as Michael Bumpus said on Seattle Sports radio on Wednesday, they are correct. Metcalf doesn’t want to get hurt in training camp and risk making his contract any less than it should be once the Seahawks extend him (hopefully!) or he signs elsewhere after the 2022 season.
But DK Metcalf is at Seahawks training camp and this means so much more to the team. This seems to show that while Metcalf wants a new deal and wants it now, he still doesn’t want to completely disrupt the ebb and flow of practice and doesn’t see himself as above the team.
Had Metcalf truly been a prima donna he might have decided to not show at training camp just as he didn’t show at mandatory minicamp. But training camp is more important than minicamp and had Metcalf not come to Seahawks training camp we would have had real issues.
But he knows how important he is to the team both on the field and in the locker room. The young players (which sounds weird to say as Metcalf is only 24 years old but is entering his fourth season in the league) most likely look up to him and watch how he handles his business too.
Right now, Metcalf is handling his business and choosing not to take part in on-field drills. But he did decide to come to Seahawks camp and that is much more important.