To whom much is given, much is expected and you won't find many more gifted athletes than Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf. Coming into the NFL, Metcalf was expected to be a first-round draft pick on the strength of his performance at the Scouting Combine. However, purportedly due to a poor 3-cone time he slipped, falling all the way to Seattle at the end of the second round. Ever since, Metcalf has been a problem for the other 31 teams.
In five seasons Metcalf has racked up 372 catches, over 5,000 receiving yards and has scored 43 touchdowns. DK has also been named to two Pro Bowl teams. That's the kind of production that you'd expect out of any star WR at this level, and Metcalf has been nothing if not consistent, totaling at least 900 yards and six touchdowns every year.
All that being said, one can't escape the feeling that Metcalf has not really reached his ceiling. Given the incredible physical attributes that he has at his disposal, Metcalf should be dominating the league in a way that only WR1 Justin Jefferson and WR2 Tyreek Hill can outmatch. He has more than enough potential to post 1,500 yards and 15 touchdowns in a single season, even with Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba getting their proper targets.
So, how can DK improve and take his game to the next level? One analyst hit the nail on the head reently. Here's what former pro receiver Michael Bumpus said about how Metcalf can get better on ESPN radio earlier this week:
“He has to get better at adjusting to footballs... And there were clips that I saw from him catching footballs from Russell Wilson (in a recent training session) and it looks like he’s getting more nimble, if you can do that at his age and his size. It looks like he’s doing that, adjusting to the football and catching the tough ball over his head. If you had to point to a part of his game that he can improve on, that was it for me. And I think that’s where he can excel a bit.”
This take is right on the money. Aside from the silly penalty issues that he should have outgrown by now, this is the most legitimate criticism of his game. Metcalf's superior size and strength compared to just about every defensive back on the planet should make him one of the league's best receivers at catching 50/50 balls. However, his EPA on deep pass attempts was awful last season and has never been up to expectations given his physical profile. Tracking and adjusting to the ball better would make a huge difference there.
We know that it's possible for Metcalf to reach that next gear because have seen flashes of it before. For our part, the best we've seen DK came in the 2022 playoff matchup against the 49ers when he completely dominated one of the best defensive units in the league. That day Metcalf caught 10 of 13 targets and totaled 136 yards and two touchdowns. While fans can't expect those kind of numbers every week - especially against an elite defense - he's more than capable of doing that on a regular basis.
If new head coach Mike Macdonald and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb can both unlock Metcalf's deep game and get him more focused in general, we may yet see DK blossom into an Offensive Player of the Year candidate.
