“I’m just here so I won’t get fined”, “I’m just ’bout that action boss” and “Yea”. Seattle Seahawks fans know these famous quotes very well; they are from fan favorite Marshawn Lynch. To this day I still use “I’m just here so I won’t get fined” when I’m stuck going somewhere I don’t want to be (like the time my wife dragged me to look at wedding invitations on a football Sunday!). It comes as no surprise, that when Marshawn was asked after the Seahawks’ wildcard win last season about the performance of his rookie teammate DK Metcalf, he had another “Lynch-ism” to share with the media. When asked what impresses him most about DK Metcalf, Lynch responded with “That he a big ass dude who can move like that”. Classic Beast Mode!
If you remember back to last year’s off season, there was a ton of buzz at the NFL combine about Ole Miss wide receiver DK Metcalf. All the social media buzz was shirtless pictures showing what a massive human being he was, not only being completely JACKED, but having abs that the Sigma Alpha Epsilon bros could crush beer cans on! At 6’3″ and 230 lbs, this Goliath of a human, who was built like a linebacker instead of a wide receiver, went out there and ran a 4.33 40-yard dash, displayed a 40.5 inch vertical and did 27 reps on the bench press – the most reps by a wide receiver since Greg Little did 27 back in 2011! The NFL Network was comparing this man to Batman – a superhero!
Fast forward to week 1 of the 2019 season, the young rookie had a 4 catch, 89 yard performance to kick off his career. Of those 4 catches, 2 of them were explosive plays where he showed some of his freakish ability and had Russel Wilson already calling him “special”. Wilson hit him down the sideline on a go route for a big 42 yard play, then later connected on a 25-yarder on one of Wilson’s patented scrambles on a broken play. After the game, RB Chris Carson called him “a freak”. Metcalf went on to finish the regular season with 58 receptions for 900 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns. This was a solid showing for a rookie wide receiver, and then his wild card game performance gave you even more excitement coming into 2020.
In that wild card game against the Eagles, DK really had a breakout game, catching 7 of 9 targets for 160 yards and a trip to the end zone. Those 160 yards were the most receiving yards ever by a rookie in a playoff game. He came through several times in big spots, hauling in some big play grabs in addition to his touchdown, including a couple of huge first down grabs on critical 3rd down plays during the game. The flashes he showed, and the impressive playoff performance left a lot of us pumped for what he would be able to do in his second year in the league.
The biggest knocks on Metcalf have been his route running ability and some issues with drops. Metcalf finished the season with the 12th worst drop rate in the NFL, but coming into this off season, he acknowledged that as a focus of what he wanted to work on. At the beginning of the off season, when asked to reflect on his rookie season, Metcalf was quoted as saying “I had way too many drops in my opinion. Some of those drops could have changed the outcome of the game. I’m just working on those drops, man.”. If DK cut his drops in half last season, there would have been a good chance at him getting to the 1,000 yard mark as a rookie. The Seattle passing attack will feature Metcalf and his partner in crime, Tyler Lockett, with no real depth behind them or a target eating TE to share with. I’m sorry, but Phillip Dorsett and Greg Olsen arent scaring me away from DK.
Even in the Covid-19 impacted off season, Metcalf spent a chunk of time working out with Russell Wilson and working to expand his role in the offense. Seahawks OC Brian Schottenheimer said that coming into 2020 they will be looking to expand DK’s role in the offense. This is certainly a testament to him working on his route running ability and becoming more versatile. Schottenheimer said that this season we can expect them to move him around the field more and line him up in different positions other than just the ‘X’. We already know Wilson likes to throw the deep ball and hes never had a receiver who had the size and speed combination that Metcalf has.
Some of the stats that Metcalf put up in 2019 can also really get you excited about drafting him this coming season. In 2019, he led the NFL in end-zone targets with 17, had 17 contested catches and 24 explosive plays. He trailed only John Brown in adjusted yards per route run. He graded out on PFF at the end of the season at an overall grade of 73.4 which was 38th among all wide receivers. In Donkey Teeth’s “Top 20 wide receivers” article last month here on Razzball, he has Metcalf ranked as his WR16 and projects a 1,050 yard season on the horizon. Boof has him slightly lower, but still has him as WR25 in his Razzball WR rankings article.
Coming into your upcoming drafts, put a star next to DK Metcalf on your draft sheet. He currently has an ADP of 50 in NFFC drafts, and I was recently able to snag him in the 5th round of the “Beat Rudy Gamble” draft. With improvements in his route tree and less drops, along with added chemistry and trust with his quarterback, Mr. Unlimited, DK Metcalf is certainly poised to take a second year leap and be a top 15-20 wide receiver. I believe that DK will be a major part of the offense in Seattle and agree that he will eclipse 1,000 receiving yards with a very good chance at scoring double digit touchdowns this season. Wilson was already 3rd in the NFL in TD passes and extremely efficient in the red zone. I wouldnt be surprised at all for him to throw up a few more to his 6’3″ 230 pound superhero in 2020. DK is a high end WR2 with the potential of being a WR1 with his upside. Target Metcalf in the late 4th or early 5th round of your upcoming draft and ride this monster to a fantasy championship!
