The Pittsburgh Steelers acquired veteran wide receiver DK Metcalf in a trade with the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a second-round pick and a late-round pick swap on Sunday. The massive deal brings an end to a rift between Seattle and Metcalf that has been brewing for some time.
Metcalf wasn’t able to agree on a long-term extension with Seattle as he enters the final year of his contract, which led him to request a trade. The Seahawks granted him permission to seek a deal, and even tried to make him a part of a blockbuster trade while attempting to acquire star edge rusher Maxx Crosby from the Las Vegas Raiders.
Metcalf received inquiries from plenty of interested teams, but he established three main criteria for his next destination, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini. The 27-year-old wanted to play for a team in a warm climate. He also wanted the team to be a Super Bowl contender with a stable quarterback situation. Lastly, he wanted to be paid as one of the top wide receivers in the league.
Steelers only meet one of DK Metcalf’s three wishes for his new team
Ultimately, the Seahawks only granted Metcalf one of his three wishes. The Steelers locked Metcalf into a five-year, $150 million contract extension after the trade. Metcalf’s new annual salary of $30 million makes him one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the league, making it the only item on his list to be checked off here.
While Metcalf is locked into his new deal, it’s fair to wonder how happy he is with the destination. Perhaps the money outweighs the other two items on his wish list, but the Steelers are particularly far off from meeting those expectations.
Pittsburgh currently doesn’t even have a quarterback on their roster. If the season started today, they’d have to trot out a wide receiver or running back to throw the ball to Metcalf. Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen are all poised to be free agents; perhaps that situation will change in free agency, as the Steelers are reportedly attempting to recruit former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold to join them.
The Steelers are also far from a warm-weather team. Pittsburgh has an average temperature of 25° Fahrenheit in December, per U.S. Climate Data. The average temperature reaches highs above 70° Fahrenheit in September, and only drops from there throughout the NFL season.
Metcalf may be satisfied with his deal for now, but his patience may be tested in December if the Steelers continue struggling on offense as they have for the past several years.