On paper, DK Metcalf putting up 83 receiving yards for the Pittsburgh Steelers is respectable, especially by recent standards of this offense. But Metcalf knows his day could’ve been so much more. Happy with the team win, Metcalf says there’s plenty for him to work on to help Pittsburgh net another.
“We can do better. Because I’m mad at myself about a few of them,” Metcalf told ESPN’s Courtney Cronin immediately after the Steelers’ 34-32 win over the Jets, confirming he was referring about drops.
Metcalf’s first target as a Steeler was dropped over the middle. He quickly made up for it with a 23-yard catch-and-run on the following play to get Pittsburgh out of third and long. It jump-started the drive that led to Rodgers’ touchdown pass to WR Ben Skowronek, the team’s first Week 1 opening-drive touchdown since 2008.
Metcalf and Rodgers linked up again on the first quarter’s final play, a 31-yard screen pass that highlighted Metcalf’s wheels in open grass. His wildest reception came in the second half, a slant that pinballed off multiple players of both uniforms before falling back into Metcalf’s hands.
Though four Steelers found the end zone, Metcalf was held out of it. Still, he led the team in targets and receiving yards and made positive strides toward having a 1,000-yard season after falling 8 yards shy just a season ago. There’s no question Rodgers will pepper him with targets, just as he did throughout training camp. Part of having a veteran like Rodgers means he’ll get the ball to playmakers. Metcalf is a playmaker.
“This was our first time together,” he said of a new-look Steelers offense. “It was a lot of new faces here in Pittsburgh. So the message is go out there and just show who you are and just be yourself. And I think we did a good job of that today.”
His drops can and need to be cleaned up. But Metcalf isn’t known for having the surest hands. We noted that in our training camp evaluation.
“If there’s a negative, his hands aren’t as reliable, and a couple of throws will bounce off him,” we wrote, though he still earned the highest summer grade at his position.
After facing Sauce Gardner Sunday, Metcalf will draw another tough matchup for his home Steelers debut. The Seattle Seahawks’ Tariq Woolen is big and long and obviously knows Metcalf well from their days as teammates. Just as Rodgers did against his former team today, Metcalf will look for a statement performance, one without drops, in Week Two.
