It seems like that in recent years in the NFL, did receiver movement is becoming more and more prevalent during the offseason. Star pass catchers such as AJ Brown, Tyreek Hill and others have all been dealt during the spring in past years while teams opt out of paying them top contracts.
This season, another top wideout could be on the move. Seattle Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf is up for a contract extension this offseason and has emerged as a top trade candidate while the Seahawks wrestle with the idea of giving him big money.
If Metcalf does end up being traded, the Las Vegas Raiders would be the top suitor early in the process, according to Karen Guregian of MassLive.
“If Seahawks wideout D.K. Metcalf is dealt, people around the league believe it’ll be to Las Vegas to reunite with Pete Carroll,” Guregian reported.
Metcalf is a very talented wide receiver, but he has yet to take the next step into superstardom that the Seahawks were hoping for when they gave him a three-year, $72 million contract that kicked in before the 2023 season. In 2024, Jaxon Smith-Njigba overtook Metcalf as Geno Smith’s favorite target in the Seahawks offense.
Why the Seahawks should try to trade DK Metcalf
DK Metcalf will likely command somewhere near $30 million annually on a new contract, and there are teams out there with excess cap space who will be willing to give him that amount of money for the chance that he can improve again.
However, that would not be a smart investment for the Seahawks at this point in their team-building process. Seattle has holes to fill on its defense and could use some money to beef up the linebacking core, possibly by retaining free agent Ernest Jones, and add depth on the defensive line.
Seattle obviously also has a massive hole to fill on the offensive line, where it currently has only one truly solid starter in left tackle Charles Cross. With Jaxon Smith-Njigba emerging as a true No. 1 wide receiver last season and becoming the top guy for Geno Smith, there is no reason to pay Metcalf that much money to be a second fiddle in the passing game.
Those reasons to let Metcalf go come even before looking at the drawbacks in his own game. The Ole Miss product still has fumbling problems and isn’t an asset in the way that you would expect a receiver of his size to be. He isn’t physical at the catch point and struggles to win contested catches down the field because of his hesitance to be a hands catcher.
Metcalf also isn’t detailed as a route runner, which caused Smith to throw multiple interceptions in key moments of losses against the Vikings and the 49ers. Metcalf is still a good player, but he has too many flaws for the Seahawks to justify extending him at this point.
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