GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers reportedly have made a “formidable” trade offer to acquire premier receiver DK Metcalf from the Seattle Seahawks.
However, a source told Packers On SI on Friday afternoon that the team has not had any contact with the Seahawks regarding Metcalf at the Scouting Combine, let alone engaged in any trade negotiations.
It doesn’t take much to connect dots between the teams, though.
The Packers’ young receiver corps failed to take a step forward in 2024. Complicating matters, the team’s big-play receiver, Christian Watson, suffered a torn ACL in January and likely will miss the first half of the 2025 season.
The Seahawks, meanwhile, are about $10.12 million over the salary cap, which the NFL set at $279.2 million on Thursday, according to OverTheCap.com. The Packers are about $45.77 million under the cap and could absorb Metcalf’s $18.0 million base salary.
According to the report published by the Emerald City Spectrum, the Packers’ offer includes an early draft pick and a young receiver. Watson and Romeo Doubs, like Metcalf, are entering their final season under contract. While Metcalf has been a stud, Watson has a serious knee injury and Doubs has failed to hit 700 yards in any of his three seasons and is coming off a season plagued by a suspension and two concussions.
The team’s other young receivers are Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks. Reed’s skill-set is too much like young Seahawks star Jaxon Smith-Njigba. That, presumably, would make Wicks the focus of any offer. Of 89 receivers who were targeted at least 50 times in 2024, Wicks was 84th in catch percentage, 85th in yards per target and 87th in drop percentage.
According to The Spectrum’s Corbin Smith, the “Packers have been open to (the) idea of moving their first-round pick for DK Metcalf in part because … they believe they can get similar compensation back for cornerback Jaire Alexander in a separate deal.”
However, nobody in the league thinks the Packers are going to get a first-round pick for Alexander. In fact, according to two team executives contacted by Packers On SI, Alexander’s injury history, contract and reputation make him worth no more than a Day 3 pick.
Moreover, with Metcalf entering his final season under contract, he wouldn’t be worth a first-round pick to any team.
Nonetheless, there’s little doubt Metcalf would be a legit No. 1 receiver for Jordan Love.
Metcalf, who turned 27 in December, entered the NFL as a second-round pick in 2019. At 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds with 4.33 speed in the 40, he’s even more of a physical freak than Watson.
In 15 games in 2024, he caught 66 passes for 992 yards and five touchdowns. In six seasons, he has three 1,000-yard campaigns and never failed to hit 900.
“He’s on our team. Yeah, yeah. He’s a big, strong, fast, physical receiver,” Seahawks GM John Schneider said at the Scouting Combine in downplaying trade speculation.
The upside with Metcalf.
– Without Watson, the Packers don’t have a true deep threat. In 2024, Metcalf caught a league-high 16 passes on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. Of 72 receivers who were targeted at least 10 times on deep passes, Metcalf ranked 12th with a 50.0 percent catch rate.
Asked about replacing Watson’s big-play ability, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the Combine: “That’s a tough thing to do because there’s not many guys that can really run like him. But, certainly, you’d like to in some way. Certainly, we have some other guys that can run and do some of the things he does, but he’s pretty special at that.”
– Metcalf has missed only three games in six seasons.
– He typically is sure-handed, with three drops and a drop rate of 4.3 percent in 2024.
– The son of former NFL offensive lineman Terrence Metcalf, he’d fit as a blocker. “Trying to block my ass off and trying to get pancakes on defensive backs,” he said of his priorities when not getting the ball.
Metcalf had three consecutive 100-yard games early in the season. However, after catching four passes for 99 yards and one touchdown at Atlanta, he missed a couple games and failed to top 70 yards the rest of the season.
The focal point of opposing defenses, Metcalf took the limited numbers in stride.
“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 during Seattle’s five-game winning streak. “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.
“And if you continue to win, you stay relevant. So no, I’m just honing on just continuing to do my job. If the stats don’t say so, then so be it. At least we get to win.”
Metcalf has faced the Packers three times. He was held in check in each. His best game was four receptions for 59 yards in the 2019 playoffs, a 28-23 victory for the Packers. He was limited to three receptions for 28 yards when the Packers routed Seattle in December.
Nonetheless, he’d be the No. 1 receiver that Josh Jacobs was clamoring for at the Super Bowl.
“You’d like to have somebody move into that space but, at the same time, I’d like multiple guys to be able to move into that space,” Gutekunst said this week. “What I’m looking for is guys that, when they’re called upon, can perform at a high level. I think we have a lot of guys that have done that and are moving into that space.”
