Just because there are rumors about a key player being traded in the NFL does not mean those rumors will not turn into fact. The San Francisco 49ers gave wide receiver Deebo Samuel the freedom to seek a trade, and on Saturday, the 49ers sent Samuel to the Washington Commanders. There have been rumors that the Seattle Seahawks could trade wide receiver DK Metcalf, too.
Could that happen? Sure, but it should not happen for anything close to what San Francisco got back from the Commanders.
The trade involving Samuel saw the receiver go to Washington and the Commanders only having to send back a fifth-round 2025 NFL draft choice in return. The deal will not be finalized until the new league year begins on Wednesday, March 12. As part of the move, Washington will pay all of Samuel's salary, so the 49ers will save $17 million.
Could the Deebo Samuel trade affect what the Seattle Seahawks can get for DK Metcalf?
To be fair, Samuel is a different kind of player than Metcalf and most other wide receivers. Samuel can be used as a running back quite a bit, as needed, as well as move around from the slot to the outside as a receiver. Metcalf is more of a pure outside wideout. He is also more consistently productive than Samuel. The soon-to-be former 49ers receiver is also two years older than the Seahawks receiver.
In other words, what the 49ers got back for Samuel should likely have no bearing on what Seattle could get for Metcalf. A fifth-rounder only, even if Seattle is shedding all of Metcalf's money owed, should be ridiculously out of the question. Most likely, the best Seattle could get back for their 6'4" receiver is a second-round pick.
That should not be enough, either. Veteran Tyler Lockett is obviously diminishing in terms of being productive, and Seattle needs a receiver like Metcalf, who can use his size and speed to scare opponents with deep passes, to pair with Jaxon Smith-Njigba. That should be the priority for the offense, and not trying to let Metcalf go because he will be even more expensive beginning in 2026.
Metcalf's deal is up in 2025. His cap hit is $31 million next season, but it almost certainly will be more than that in 2026 and beyond.
If Seattle can get a first-round choice back for Metcalf and general manager John Schneider sees a wide receiver in the 2025 draft he really likes, then maybe the Seahawks will trade Metcalf. But other teams also saw what the 49ers got in return for Samuel, so it is very unlikely that any team is now going to offer Seattle a first-round choice for Metcalf. In other words, he will probably stay in Seattle for at least one more season.