DK Metcalf is one of the few players holding out of mandatory minicamp, creating any pressure he can over the Seattle Seahawks to get a contract extension. While the Seahawks want to sign their star wide receiver to a long-term deal, it will come at a staggering cost.
With a rising NFL salary cap, salaries are exploding across the league. The highest paid NFL players saw huge spikes in their contract values this year thanks to a wave of extensions and free-agent signings. Among all players, wide receivers cashed in the most with one market-setting contract after another.
It all doesn’t come at an ideal time for the Seahawks. Just at the start of a rebuild, committing significant guaranteed money and cap holds to a wide receiver isn’t the best move for an NFL team with uncertainty at quarterback.
- DK Metcalf contract: $4.324 million cap hit (2022), 2023 free agent
However, Metcalf is a valued member of the Seahawks’ franchise with both the coaching staff and front office making it clear they want him as part of the long-term core. In order for that to happen, Seattle needs to be prepared to sign one of the largest NFL contracts this offseason.
In an appearance on the You Pod to Win the Game podcast, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler shed light on the likely starting point for the Seahawks or any other team in contract negotiations with Metcalf. Specifically, Fowler tied in the extension A.J. Brown signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.
“Most likely. I think if you’re Tory Dandy, you set up that deal (A.J. Brown contract) as a baseline. D.K. can’t take less than that, I don’t think…It’s gotta be there or more.”
Jeremy Fowler on cost of a DK Metcalf contract extension
Philadelphia acquired Brown during the 2022 NFL Draft and immediately signed him to a four-year, $100 million contract extension. While his resume is arguably better than Metcalf’s, the belief in the NFL is Metcalf offers more upside and could become an elite receiver.
A four-year extension worth $25 million per season, at minimum, represents market value. It’s also important for agent Tory Dandy – representing Brown, Metcalf and Deebo Samuel – to get each of his clients paid what they are worth.
- DK Metcalf stats (career): 216 receptions, 3,170 receiving yards and 29 touchdowns in 49 games
This could still prove to be an issue for the Seahawks. Spending $25-plus million annually on a wide receiver for a team that is likely at least two years away from contending, in a best-case scenario, might not be the best long-term decision.
It’s exactly why there are likely NFL teams still reaching out to the Seahawks’ front office, waiting to see if Metcalf holding out and a high asking price opens the door to a blockbuster trade this year.