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- Mar 20, 2019
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Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf has had two of the best receiving performance of his young career in games in Philadelphia against the Eagles.
Metcalf caught 10 passes for a new career-high 177 yards against the Eagles in Seattle’s 23-17 win on Monday night. Last year in the playoffs, Metcalf caught seven passes for a then career-high 160 yards and a touchdown in a 17-9 victory.
In a different universe, Metcalf could be playing in Philadelphia. The Eagles drafted a wide receiver, Stanford’s J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, seven picks before Metcalf was taken by Seattle in last year’s NFL Draft.
Metcalf remembers.
“I think it was just at the right time, right place,” Metcalf said Monday night after the game. “It’s kind of like coming home. You know, place that had a chance to draft me but they didn’t and so I got to make them pay.”
Metcalf also said a pre-game interaction with Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz added some fuel to the fire as well.
“I’m happy. I’m getting a little respect, but you know I’ve still got work to do,” Metcalf said. “One of the defensive coaches came up to me and kind of made me mad. He was like ‘I was in Detroit with Megatron (Calvin Johnson) but you’re not there yet.’ In my mind, I’m not trying to be Megatron. I’m trying to be me. I had a little chip on my shoulder the whole game (after that).”
Metcalf has more catches for more yards in two games at Lincoln Financial Field than Arcega-Whiteside has in two seasons with the Eagles at this point. And even if Metcalf isn’t trying to be Calvin Johnson, he’s actually on a superior statistical track at this stage in his career. Through the first 27 games of Metcalf’s career, he has 116 catches for 1,939 yards and 16 touchdowns. Johnson at the same stage had 95 catches for 1,662 yards and 11 touchdowns for the (then awful) Detroit Lions.
Schwartz said after the game that his comments weren’t at all a slight and that he was complimenting Metcalf. Via John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia, Schwartz said he told Metcalf he has a ton of respect for him and that he’s the closest he’s seen to Megatron.
“You may not be Calvin yet but you’re on your way,” Schwartz said.
Metcalf replied to that comment on his Twitter account with Michael Jordan‘s “and I took that personally” line from The Last Dance.
Metcalf seems intent on holding a bit of a grudge against the Eagles at this point. If he keeps setting new career-highs every time he plays them, the Seahawks will be just fine with it as well.