Getty Seahawks WR DK Metcalf has a "market" for a possible trade.
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf has no shortage of trade suitors amid his current contract situation.
As Metcalf and the Seahawks continue to work out a new deal for the former Pro Bowl receiver, a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler on Sunday, June 12, indicates Metcalf’s market for a possible trade is strong.
Via Tyler Conway of Bleacher Report:
“Execs I talk to believe he’s got a trade market, that teams have called or at least made some overtures to feel out whether he’d be available,” said Fowler. “Seattle has not really pressed that issue. They want to get something done with him long-term. It just depends on if they can get the right money.”
Seahawks Optimistic Deal Will Get Done With Metcalf
The 24-year-old Metcalf is on the verge of entering the last year of his rookie contract. Metcalf is due to earn just a shade under $4 million for the 2022 season, which ranks 41st among all wide receivers in the NFL. According to Spotrac, that current cap figure is nearly six times less than his actual market value, which is $23.3 million.
Fowler referenced the contract situation of safety Jamal Adams, who took a hold-in approach — Adams attended practice, but did not participate in workouts during training camp — to contract negotiations last year. Adams and the Seahawks eventually agreed on a contract that resulted in four years for $72 million ($38 million guaranteed and $20 million signing bonus), becoming the highest-paid safety in NFL history.
Despite the Seahawks’ intentions of getting a contract extension done with Metcalf, the receiver recently sat out all three mandatory minicamp sessions. Head coach Pete Carroll addressed the situation to reporters, remaining optimistic that the two sides will eventually get a deal done.
“We’ve been through this for years, you know. And it’s a challenging time,” coach Pete Carroll said on Thursday, June 9. “We’ve had so many high-profile guys that have gone through this process, and how’s that worked out for us? We figured it out in time. And so (GM John Schneider) is on it, and he’s as experienced as you can get at handling this stuff, and DK’s got great representation, and DK is a heck of a kid.”
Fowler’s report corroborates with Carroll’s comments, saying that Seattle will be “aggressive” in getting a deal done with Metcalf.
“The people I’m talking to believe that Seattle will be aggressive sometime this summer in trying to hammer out a deal,” says Fowler.
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Why Seahawks May Not Sign Metcalf to Deal
Wide receivers across the league have reset the market with the new contracts signed this offseason. The Los Angeles’ Rams Cooper Kupp recently signed a deal worth $75 million guaranteed, the largest guaranteed deal for a non-quarterback in NFL history. Meanwhile, the Miami Dolphins signed Tyreek Hill to a $30 million per year deal after giving up a boatload of draft picks to the Kansas City Chiefs to acquire him.
A.J. Brown — who shares the same agent, Tory Dandy, as Metcalf — signed a four-year, $100 million deal with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Unlike those teams, the Seahawks are in a rebuilding situation right now. In other words, the sense of urgency in signing Metcalf to a big contract may not be there.
If the Seahawks choose not to pony up the money to pay one of the top young receivers in the game, there will clearly be a “market” for Metcalf.