Looks like this offseason wasn’t a spur of the moment decision for Metcalf wanting out of Seattle.
We interrupt our wave of NFL Draft coverage, mock drafts, and player profiles to bring you some buzz from the recently concluded annual league meeting in Florida.
Three weeks ago the Seattle Seahawks agreed to trade star receiver DK Metcalf to the Pittsburgh Steelers following Metcalf’s public trade request. Based on reporting from ESPN’s Brady Henderson, this was not Metcalf’s first trade request. That is certainly new information regarding his stance on being with the Seahawks.
The trade request that led the Seahawks to send DK Metcalf to Pittsburgh last month wasn’t the first time he asked out of Seattle. According to team sources, the star receiver had requested trades multiple times in recent offseasons.
That revelation sheds light on Seattle’s decision to deal Metcalf to the Steelers for the No. 52 selection and a swap of late-round picks. The Seahawks didn’t plan on trading him at the start of the offseason, but they had to weigh Metcalf’s prolonged unhappiness in addition to the inherent risk of signing a player to a massive third contract.
Metcalf’s preferred landing spots, according to multiple sources familiar with the trade talks, were the Texans and Chargers. But his contract situation complicated the matter, as it meant the Seahawks had to find a trade partner that would not only give them enough compensation in return but also be willing and able to sign Metcalf to a new deal. The Patriots were interested in trading for Metcalf but he effectively nixed that possibility by making it known that he didn’t want to go to New England, according to a source familiar with the discussions. — Brady Henderson
Unless “recent offseasons” was literally just these last two seasons, this would most likely include the final season(s) under Pete Carroll.
Metcalf was drafted in the second round by the Seahawks in 2019, earning All-Pro Second-Team honors in 2020. He agreed to a three-year contract extension in the 2022 offseason, which was only a few months after the Russell Wilson trade. There hadn’t been any real inklings that DK wanted out and certainly the fervor among some fans to trade him hasn’t really boiled up until fairly recently.
All we’re left to do is speculate about how he felt about the decision to trade his good pal Russell Wilson, Pete Carroll’s ousting as head coach, Geno Smith as his quarterback, the three Seahawks offensive coordinators who have been fired—I guess Shane Waldron was “free to look for another job” when Pete left—since he entered the league, and just his own general feelings about the state of the Seahawks given the team’s zero playoff wins since their Divisional Round trip in his rookie season.
We’ll see Metcalf again when the Seahawks travel to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers in the regular season.