Wide receiver DK Metcalf wanted out of Seattle multiple times over the past few preseasons. His request to be traded went unheeded until this offseason, when, just before free agency began, Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider traded Metcalf to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Coincidentally, Metcalf's Steelers will host Seattle in Week 2 of the 2025 regular season. ESPN's Ben Solak has the game listed among his nine interesting schedule features in a recent article. Moreover, Solak appears to be rooting for Metcalf in the matchup.
Why a supposedly independent report would imply such opinions is confusing. Instead of just saying that the game could be Metcalf versus Mike Macdonald and the Seahawks' secondary, Solak makes it sound as if the game is much more important to the receiver than Seattle's team.
Seahawks were right about trading wide receiver DK Metcalf
He writes, "Metcalf clearly had financial frustrations with Seattle but got a huge contract from the Steelers as part of his offseason trade. It feels like a good chance to show the old guys why he was worth every penny."
Why would it not be that the Seahawks have a good chance to show Metcalf he wasn't much needed? Why does it have to be player-focused, especially as the player was the one who wanted out? Not among the reasons Metcalf requested a trade was money, so while Solak might be correct, he is also assuming the reality.
Metcalf said he wanted to go somewhere where the team played in a warmer weather climate, had a better quarterback situation, and was closer to winning a Super Bowl. He also did not have a no-trade clause, though, so Schneider could have dealt him anywhere. The Steelers offer none of Metcalf's stipulations.
Solak also makes the Seahawks sound cheap, as if the team hasn't paid players good money in the past. Metcalf's extension with Seattle in 2022 paid him an average annual salary of $24 million, a decent number for contracts being signed at the time.
With the Steelers, Metcalf's new extension will pay him an average annual salary of $33 million. More than what he received in 2022, but the market has also changed.
The Seahawks had a good reason for not paying Metcalf more than $30 million, though. He was inconsistently productive game-in and game-out, had far too many unneeded 15-yard penalties, and let his emotions get the best of him too many times (since 2020, Metcalf has been fined 10 times for things that would not have happened except he was angry), and was a poor route-runner.
Although Solak tries to speak it into truth, the fact is that Metcalf would not have been "worth every penny." Seattle will need a high-end big receiver soon, but they didn't need Metcalf's mercurial attitude. No matter what happens in Week 2, that won't change.