The Pittsburgh Steelers have lived and died by the turnover battle in many games this season. Their Week 12 game against the Chicago Bears is a great example of that. Turnovers ended up really hurting the Steelers. They started off on the wrong foot, with Mason Rudolph throwing an interception on the second play of the game. It was a great play by Bears corner Nahshon Wright to beat DK Metcalf for the ball. Metcalf’s contested-catch ability has received some criticism following that showing, but he’s not concerned about that.
“I don’t give a fuck about what the corner’s doing,” Metcalf said Wednesday via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Twitter. “I’m trying to catch the ball. That’s it.”
DK Metcalf on his mindset on coming down with contested-catch deep balls:
"I don't give a f— about what the corner's doing. I'm trying to catch the ball. That's it."
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) November 26, 2025
Metcalf doesn’t mince words, but perhaps he should concern himself a little more with what the player covering him is doing. The 6-4, 229-pounder has a massive frame for a receiver. Contested catches should be a staple of his game. However, they aren’t and haven’t been for much of his career.
It’s hard to blame Rudolph for that turnover. He threw the ball up to his No. 1 receiver, giving him a chance to make a play. Was it a perfect pass? No, but Metcalf had an opportunity to at least keep Wright from picking it off.
This season has been a frustrating one for Metcalf. He hasn’t performed at the level that the Steelers were hoping he would. He’s got 42 catches for 573 yards and five touchdowns in 11 games. Considering what he’s getting paid, that’s not good enough.
Not all of that has been his fault. The Steelers’ offense hasn’t done Metcalf many favors. It doesn’t often take advantage of Metcalf’s size and speed with shots downfield. That likely makes it even more upsetting for him when he doesn’t haul in those passes in the rare times they’ve come his way, like on Rudolph’s interception.
However, Metcalf is getting paid like one of the best receivers in the league, and his production doesn’t match that. He’s shown flashes, such as when he took a short pass 80 yards for a touchdown in Week 4 against the Minnesota Vikings.
The Steelers need more from him, though. While they’ve managed to win games in spite of their offensive issues, that unit needs to step up down the stretch. They’re currently outside of the playoffs. Perhaps better performances out of Metcalf could help get them into the playoffs. That might mean coming down with more 50-50 balls, though.
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