The Seattle Seahawks might be moving on from wide receiver DK Metcalf.
And ESPN’s Bill Barnwell likes the Denver Broncos as a potential landing spot if they do trade the star wide receiver.
On Thursday, Metcalf requested a trade away from Seattle and wants to land with a contender, according to multiple reports.
Metcalf has played all six years of his NFL career with the Seahawks, twice making the Pro Bowl and having three seasons north of 1,000 yards receiving. In total, he’s caught 438 passes, for 6,324 yards and 48 touchdowns. Last year he had 66 catches for 992 yards and five touchdowns in 15 games.
DK Metcalf is a freak on the field, measuring at 6-foot-4 and weighing 235 pounds. He’d immediately be a top-two target for Broncos QB Bo Nix along with Courtland Sutton. And at just 27-years-old he should have a lot of good football in front of him.
Barnwell identified 10 teams that should take a look at Metcalf, then narrowed it down to Denver and Green Bay as his two favorite destinations.
“Coach Sean Payton has almost always had a receiver in his offenses who thrived with physicality and catch radius,” Barnwell writes. “Metcalf has the potential to… give Nix a playmaker over the middle of the field.”
DK Metcalf is due $18 million in 2025 and will count for nearly $32 million against the salary cap, so it’d be an expensive investment for the Broncos. He’ll almost assuredly want a new contract from the team he’s dealt to, so Denver GM George Paton and Payton would have to be willing to give him an extension.
Plus, what is Metcalf going to cost to acquire? It’d assuredly be high draft selections, potentially even a first-rounder, and the Broncos are finally recovering from the Russell Wilson trade in terms of having their full plethora of picks.
“The issue for the Broncos… is draft capital,” Barnwell writes. “They are going to be feeling the impact of the missing draft picks (from the Wilson trade) on their roster for years to come.”
Ultimately, though, Barnwell thinks the upside is high for Meltcalf in Denver.
“Running through the league… my two favorite landing spots for Metcalf are with the Broncos and Packers. Denver has a need for a more physical top receiver with a quarterback on a rookie deal,” Barnwell concludes.
And that’s the beauty of having Nix on a “cheap” contract the next handful of years. Denver can spend big at other positions.
We’ll see how it all shakes out, but between Davante Adams, Cooper Kupp and DK Metcalf, one of them could land with the Broncos in the coming days or weeks.