DK Metcalf steps too far in comparing Seahawks' Coby Bryant to an all-time great

Coby Bryant is playing extremely well for the Seattle Seahawks since he took over one of the starting safety spots in Week 7 after Rayshawn Jenkins was injured. Jenkins has returned but is not able to get back his starting gig. That is one sign of just how good Bryant has been.

In Seattle's last seven games, in which the team is 5-2, Bryant has three interceptions. One of those was a 69-yard pick-six against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 12 that gave Seattle a lead they would never relinquish. Is Bryant playing like a Pro Bowler? Maybe, but while he has helped the Seahawks' defense become much better, he is more a piece of the puzzle instead of being the keystone figure.

Still, Bryant has always had a reputation for being a ball-hawk, though he was buried on the depth chart after his rookie season when he was the leading slot cornerback. He entered the NFL, after all, as a cornerback out of the University of Cincinnati, but then lost his gig when Seattle chose Devon Witherspoon in the first round of the 2023 draft.

DK Metcalf compared Seattle Seahawks safety Coby Bryant to Hall of Famer Ed Reed

Bryant's biggest issue as a cornerback was that he lacked elite quickness. As a safety, his high football IQ and anticipation are a better fit. We might not have learned just how good he would be in Mike Macdonald's defense, though, until Jenkins was hurt.

Is Bryant playing so well that he should be compared to an all-time great, however? No. But that did not stop Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf from making such a comparison recently.

According to an article by Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic, Metcalf said, "I know it’s a stretch, but just hear me out... No offense to Ed Reed or anything, but just the way that (Bryant) tracks the ball, he’s always near the ball. Just going back to when he was a rookie, he’s always had a nose for the ball, whether that was punching it out, catching picks, or making an open-field tackle. I just thought he had the complete package to be a great defensive player."

Ed Reed played for the Baltimore Ravens and was the equivalent of what Earl Thomas did on the Seahawks' Legion of Boom defenses. He was a nine-time Pro Bowler who had 64 career interceptions, and he was named First-Team All-Pro five times. He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019 in his first year of eligibility.

To be fair, Metcalf was not saying Bryant is as talented or as good as Reed. The receiver was simply saying Bryant gives Seattle the kind of ball-hawking safety the team has not had in some time. Former Seattle safety Quandre Diggs had a bunch of interceptions with the team, but Bryant does more than pick passes off. He has also forced six fumbles, including four in his rookie season in 2022.

Not that anyone expected it before the season, but now the Seahawks have to hope Coby Bryant does not get injured. The defense would not be as efficient as it recently has been. The safety might not be a Pro Bowler, but he is an important piece of Seattle's success.

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