Seahawks DK Metcalf is being played, and he doesn't even know it

Let's get mathy with Metcalf and his penalties

I know a lot of 12s defend Metcalf, saying it's just the way he plays, and that he has to play that way to maintain his edge. Our own Jake Luppino wrote an excellent article espousing this idea. Seriously, it's an excellent piece of work, and Jake is a fantastic writer.

In this instance, I happen to disagree. Draymond Green is brought up as an example of a player who brings a fierce intensity to the game. That's a great corollary. And let me reiterate, I love Jake's work. Hell, he's a better writer than me. A difference of opinion on one issue doesn't mean I'm not a fan of his. See how that works?

The problem is that the argument falls apart because Green was benched at times for his actions. Metcalf hasn't been. As for Green's suspension leading to him not bringing that same ferocity to the court, he was suspended for punching a teammate. That's not the same situation the Seahawks are facing with Metcalf. I'm pretty sure that if DK took a swing at Devon Witherspoon, he'd find a spot on the bench before Pete Carroll could spit out his gum. Or did you all think Percy Harvin was still on the roster?

So, let's get mathy. Just how many times has Metcalf been flagged? So far this season, according to both nflpenalties.com and The Football Database, Metcalf has been flagged five times (one penalty was offset). His four assessed penalties lead the team, by the way. Only one was for unnecessary roughness, so yay, I guess. Of course, we also have one for taunting and another for a facemask. Dang, DK, a facemask penalty on offense? Who do you think you are, Deshaun Watson? So four penalties in six games is a little excessive, especially for a wide receiver.

Let's go back further, though. I'll go with the aforementioned Football Database, to use another source. There's Metcalf again in 2022, tied for the Seahawks lead in penalties, this time with seven. By the way, Charles Cross is listed with nine penalties on nflpenalties.com, just seven on this site. But Metcalf has seven on both, so that I'd say that's accurate. DK had two calls for unsportsmanlike conduct and another for taunting. Actually, he had eight, but again, one was set aside as offsetting.

In 2021, DK only got four penalties. Awesome, right? Oh, nope, two were declined and one was offsetting. Another taunting, another unsportsmanlike conduct, and of course, that fun time when he got ejected against the Packers.

In 2020 he was only flagged three times. Amazing. Of course, one of those was for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Then in his rookie season, he was flagged five times. By the grace of God, three were offset, but one was - surprise - for unnecessary roughness, another for a facemask. So over the course of his career, DK Metcalf has been flagged 13 times for choices he made to prove a point - taunting, grabbing a facemask, shoving a defender to the ground after the play. You know, all those things that contribute absolutely nothing to the team.