It’ll be hard for Seattle Seahawks fans not to watch DK Metcalf closely in this one.
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Metcalf is an exceptional athlete, a receiver who leans into his physicality, and right now it sure looks like he could be going against a banged-up Seahawks secondary. Add in that the popular but controversial wideout requested a trade from Seattle and you’ve got a classic revenge game format – for either side.
“That element, that attention (he demands), allows everyone else to eat,” Max Starks, former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle and current color analyst for the Steelers, said during Thursday’s edition of The Huddle on Seattle Sports. “Because I don’t know about you guys, but I did not have on my football bingo card that the first passing touchdown of Aaron Rodgers’ career in Pittsburgh would be to Ben Skowronek.”
Rodgers threw four touchdowns in his Steelers debut, and not one of them went to Metcalf (though make no mistake, he’s their most potent weapon and set up a game-winning field goal with this pivotal reception). He’ll be a factor. But as tempting as it is to zero in on a name you know can be explosive, a quick reminder about two things here when it comes to Pittsburgh’s offense so far.
First, Rodgers as a passer wasn’t explosive. The future Hall of Famer got rid of the ball quickly to Steelers pass catchers that had the highest average yards after catch per reception (7.9) in the league in Week 1, per The Athletic’s Ted Nguyen. Rodgers averaged 4.3 average intended air yards, the fewest in the league in Week 1. Can he be an efficient and deadly passer? Absolutely, but it may not be in the way you’d imagine an offense with Rodgers and Metcalf would look like. It’s screen plays and quick shots and spreading the ball around – not bombs down the sideline, 20-yard darts, or Hail Mary heaves.
Which is why the second thing you need to know is that Pittsburgh’s tight ends could be a massive part of this week’s matchup.
“I would say our tight ends will probably end up being the second focus (after Metcalf),” Starks said. “I think that will end up being the true number two’s on this team, between Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith.”
The pair combined for four receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. It was a pretty democratic effort for the Steelers; seven different pass catchers had at least one target and five had three or more. But it’s no surprise Starks cautioned keeping an eye on the tight ends. They’re not just two experienced veterans on this team; they’re also part of an Arthur Smith offense that leans into heavy formations.
“I was on a show earlier and they were talking about how Jonnu Smith is just a glorified wide receiver and that Pat Freiermuth is more of a slot tight end versus an inline tight end, and Darnell Washington is a glorified right tackle. I said… yes,” Starks laughed. “Because that’s what they bring to the table. And that’s where I believe the tight end position is going to be more in-tune and more engaged, because you have to figure out where they are and where they’ll be after the snap, and that physical mismatch of different skill sets at the position presents a problem.”
What kind of problem?
“Paired with a speedster like (wide receiver) Calvin Austin, that works in concert with DK,” Starks said. “Because if you run man-zone combination coverage, you’re gonna want to man DK, but you realize, is the guy you’re putting in an isolated situation tall enough to ride that ride? So now it’s like, OK, well do we want to double him? Well now, we have to go man on the backside; do we want the speedster (Austin)? Or do we want the other guys (the tight end) that don’t quite fit the proper context that we think of as a slot that a nickel would cover? It just presents so many problems.”
Listen to the full conversation with Steelers color analyst Max Starks at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune into Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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