DK Metcalf is gone. Some Seattle Seahawks fans will move on quickly from that. That doesn't mean they are dealing with reality necessarily (maybe they are just that well-adjusted) as the loss of the wide receiver might not be felt for a bit.
With Metcalf, it gets complicated. When a player voices that he no longer wants to be part of your favorite team, there is a natural inclination to be angry with him. It feels like he or she has stabbed us in the back. We love this team, so why doesn't she?
When Metcalf requested once again to leave Seattle, he did so with the requests of playing somewhere warmer for home games, having a better quarterback situation, and closer to winning a Super Bowl. None of those at the time fit his new team, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The real truth of how Seattle Seahawks fans feel about DK Metcalf might not yet be known
Maybe they still don't. While one might argue that the Steelers are going all-in on the 2025 by adding Metcalf, quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay. But that is misleading.
Rodgers is over 40 years old and hasn't shown himself to be the same kind of quarterback in the last two seasons that he was five years ago. Pittsburgh added Metcalf but then traded George Pickens. The addition of Ramsey meant the subtraction of three-time First-Team All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Pittsburgh is ultimately no better off than they were a year ago, and if Rodgers gets hurt, they are doomed, especially as they play in the rugged AFC North.
But who cares about the Steelers, right? Seahawks want to know that trading Metcalf is OK, and adding Cooper Kupp and Marquez Valdes-Scantling should lessen the concern of who will fill Metcalf's role.
The truth is that Kupp has been hurt a lot more in the last three seasons than Metcalf has ever been, and MVS only catches about half the passes thrown his way during his career. If Kupp gets injured, things could look quite bad for the Seattle offense.
As much as Metcalf offered a mercurial attitude and not great route-running, he was the kind of dangerous threat that the Seahawks do not have anymore. MVS is explosive and fast, but he isn't strong like Metcalf. Kupp isn't as fast or as strong as Metcalf, but he does run better routes.
Is that enough to offset the loss of Metcalf? Probably not. In the end, being upset at Metcalf for wanting to leave is right and good, but his on-field production will be missed, and with it, so will Metcalf.
