Seattle Seahawks star DK Metcalf has asked for a trade. He would give Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love a coveted No. 1 receiver.
GREEN BAY, Wis. – If the Green Bay Packers’ need to increase their “level of urgency” means adding a difference-making receiver, the plot thickened on Wednesday when DK Metcalf requested a trade from the Seattle Seahawks.
As reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Seahawks have “agreed to explore options” with Metcalf, who has 900-plus receiving yards in each of his six seasons in the NFL.
Metcalf is under contract through the 2025 season with a base salary is $18.0 million. Presumably, the acquiring team would agree to a contract extension with Metcalf, just like the Las Vegas Raiders did in 2022 upon acquiring Davante Adams from the Packers.
Two-time Pro Bowl WR DK Metcalf has requested a trade and the #Seahawks have agreed to explore options, sources tell me and @RapSheet.
Days before free agency, the 27-year-old Metcalf immediately becomes the top receiver available. pic.twitter.com/DBsoZwGguL
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 5, 2025
Given the free-agent crop of receivers is filled with age and injuries, Metcalf and Adams quickly vaulted to the top of available veterans.
What would it cost to get Metcalf? One league source though a third-round pick would be fair considering Metcalf’s talent, production and durability. Another thought a fifth-round pick because of the forthcoming contract extension, which almost certainly would be in the neighborhood of $30 million per season.
“You’d better be right, you know?” general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the end of the season when asked about trading for veteran players. “When you trade a high pick for a veteran player, you’re trading a young, really good contract for a player who’s proven but is probably expensive. So, you’re giving up a pick and salary-cap space. So, I think you’ve got to weigh that.”
At age 27, Metcalf is five years younger than Adams and perhaps a better fit for the Packers given Jordan Love’s propensity for throwing the deep ball and Christian Watson’s torn ACL.
Not only is Metcalf a premier deep threat – he had more receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield than any receiver in the league – but he’s missed only three games in his career. Plus, of 84 receivers who were targeted at least 50 times last year, his drop rate of 4.3 percent ranked a solid 24th.
As much as Watson is a size-speed freak, Metcalf is on another level. At 6-foot-3 3/8 and 228 pounds, he ran his 40 in 4.33 seconds with a 40 1/2-inch vertical leap before the 2019 draft. A second-round pick, Metcalf in six seasons has 438 receptions for 6,324 yards and 48 touchdowns. For an average 17-game season, his career numbers project to 77 receptions, 1,108 yards (14.4 average) and eight touchdowns.
He was a Pro Bowler in 2020 and 2023. In 15 games last year, he caught 66 passes for 992 yards (15.0 average) and a career-low five touchdowns. He had 100-yard games in Weeks 2, 3 and 4 and 99 yards in Week 7. After missing two games due to injury, Metcalf didn’t top 70 yards the rest of the season.
He took the limited production in stride, though, as defenses – including Green Bay’s in Week 15 – schemed to take him away.
“I just look at it as a sign of respect that I’ve gained from other defensive coordinators and continue to do my job with it as blocking or being a decoy,” he told reporters late in the season. “The ball is going to find me one play or another but, if it doesn’t, at least we get the dub and that’s all that matters in this league is winning and to continue to win.”
Metcalf could be a game-changing player for the Packers, who finished the season on a three-game losing streak. Watson missed the loss at Minnesota in Week 17 with a knee injury, tore his ACL after 10 snaps against Chicago in Week 18 and missed the playoff game at Philadelphia.
Given how the offense sputtered at the end, Gutekunst might feel compelled to make a big move – especially with Watson set to miss at least the first half of next season because of the ACL. Plus, Watson and Doubs will be free agents after next season.
The Packers won’t be going solo, though. The Patriots, who have about $30 million more cap space than any team in the league, need a weapon for Drake Maye. The Raiders, coached by former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, need a receiver and have the second-most cap space.
The Los Angeles Chargers, who have the fifth-most cap space, reached the playoffs with rookie Ladd McConkey as their primary receiver. Even after trading for Deebo Samuel, the Washington Commanders have the sixth-most space. The Pittsburgh Steelers, without a reliable receiver beyond George Pickens, and the Dallas Cowboys, without a reliable receiver opposite CeeDee Lamb, rank seventh and eighth in cap space.
With almost $43.0 million available, the Packers have the 14th-most cap space, with the ability to create more by moving on from Jaire Alexander.
“I think we all have to understand that level of urgency we all need to get to where we want to go,” Gutekunst said at the Scouting Combine. “There was some good things last year, things I’m really excited about, but we didn’t finish like we needed to.”