The thing about Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf is that he’s 6-foot-4, he weighs 235 pounds, he ran a 4.33 40-yard dash at the 2019 scouting combine, and he still lasted until the final pick in the second round of the 2019 draft, because people were concerned about his three-cone time, and his route-running ability. If you watched him during his time at Ole Miss, where he racked up 67 catches for 1,228 yards and 14 touchdowns, you saw a guy who ran more and better routes than the narrative showed, but you had to watch play after play.
It didn’t take this particular observer too long through Metcalf’s first practices with the Seahawks to discern what was really up.
Why Seahawks’ DK Metcalf is a better route runner than you think
There are undoubtedly several people in the NFL who didn’t watch Metcalf as clearly as they should, and they are now regretting it. The Saints regretted it with 10:08 left in the first quarter of their Monday Night Football matchup with the Seahawks, when Metcalf just demolished cornerback Marshon Lattimore down the boundary to make the catch from quarterback Geno Smith, and then outran safety Marcus Williams for an 84-yard touchdown.
DK METCALF GOES 84 YARDS. #Seahawks
📺: #NOvsSEA on ESPN
📱: https://t.co/qQQB8T9hRg pic.twitter.com/FkZB4iBJgC— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2021
This is the same Marshon Lattimore who, per Pro Football Focus, had allowed just 12 receptions on 28 targets this season for 224 yards, 55 yards after the catch, one touchdown, one interception, 10 pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 68.2. Williams, for his part, has given up two catches on four targets for 16 yards, three yards after the catch, no touchdowns, two interceptions, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 20.8.
So, Metcalf bodied two of the NFL’s better pass defenders to make this play. Not bad at all.
Geno Smith & DK Metcalf (84-yd TD)
Metcalf reached a top speed of 21.31 mph on the play, his 2nd-fastest speed of his career as a ball carrier.
Since entering the NFL in 2019, no player has been targeted more on go routes than Metcalf (74).#NOvsSEA | #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/Dzw3myMkyz
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) October 26, 2021
“They’re explosive,” Williams said this week of the Seahawks. “They try to get the ball downfield with 14 (DK Metcalf) and 16 (Tyler Lockett) and that’s where they try to make their money out there, scrambling and things like that. So you’ve just got to lock on when they’re scrambling and make sure we don’t let them get the ball out.”
The plan didn’t work on that play. At all.