PITTSBURGH (AP) — DK Metcalf has been around the NFL long enough to know how it works whenever a player faces his former team.
The more notable the player, the more notable the noise. The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver, who spent six years in Seattle building a reputation as one of the most dynamic and physical players in the league, has no intention of paying attention to the chatter when the Seahawks visit Acrisure Stadium on Sunday.
“Y'all are going to make it a big deal,” Metcalf said. “I'm
not.”
Metcalf turned the page the moment the Steelers sent a second-round pick in this year's draft to Seattle in exchange for the 6-foot-4 two-time Pro Bowler, then immediately lavished him with a five-year deal worth over $130 million.
A month after arriving, he was in Los Angeles working out with Aaron Rodgers, hoping to get a jump start on what they believe will be a fruitful year together in Pittsburgh.
Metcalf caught four passes for 83 yards in the Steelers' season-opening win over the New York Jets, the kind of victory that opened some eyes about what Rodgers might have left, and scratched the surface of what might be possible over the next four months.
That is where Metcalf's mind is. He enjoyed his time in Seattle. It helped make him the pro he is today. But it's not part of his future.
"It’s just another football game,” Metcalf said.
Albeit one with some familiar faces on the other side of the line of scrimmage.
And while Seahawks defensive back Shaquill Griffin admitted there might be bragging rights at stake while taking on an old friend, Seattle can't afford to make the meeting personal. Not after a 17-13 loss to San Francisco in which a defense expected to be a strength was pushed around.
“We’re not sitting here just saying, ‘We only want to game plan against DK because we want to get something out of it,’” Griffin said. “We’re going to make the plays that we need to make against him. But, also, man, we’re getting ready to try to get back on track and start getting these W’s stacked up and getting that first win so we can make this run.”
Figuring out a way to keep Metcalf in check might be the first place to start.
“We have to be ready for everything, right?” Seattle coach Mike Macdonald said. “They’re allowed to put him anywhere they want. He’s allowed to run any route that they call for him.”
That's why they got him, after all.
“You do your research," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “This is a small league in the big scheme of things. Certainly, you know about the significant players, not only their talents, but their relationship with their game, their lifestyle, if you will. All of those things were really positive components of his profile and one of the reasons why we were really excited about acquiring him.”
Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold didn’t make the first impression with his new team that Rodgers did in his debut. Darnold, signed by the Seahawks to a three-year, $100.5 million contract in the offseason, threw for 150 yards and the team converted only 3 of 10 third downs.
“I think it’s all about the details right now,” Darnold said. “And we’re just going to continue to put our best foot forward in terms of finding rhythm, being able to play with rhythm and find those completions when they’re there.”
Getting into a groove soon is the goal for Darnold, who is working with a first-year offensive coordinator in Klint Kubiak. While Darnold had plenty of success throwing to Jaxon Smith-Njigba on Sunday, he’d like to distribute the ball more evenly.
“Sometimes they’re going to do things to take Jax, take Coop (Cooper Kupp), take some other guys away from you,” Darnold said. “And so other guys got to be on their P’s and Q’s in terms of being able to beat one-on-one coverage. That’s what we’re looking at this week, and it’s going to be a fun challenge for us.”
If any red flag popped up for the Steelers against the Jets, it was the way New York regularly found its way to the 41-year-old Rodgers.
The Jets sacked the NFL's oldest active player four times and knocked him down a handful of others. Rodgers took a portion of the blame, saying he ran into trouble on a couple of occasions.
Left tackle Broderick Jones, who surrendered three of the four sacks, pointed out that Rodgers isn't one to linger over mistakes.
“It’s just always ‘Next play mentality’ with him,'” Jones said. “He’ll tell me (that he messed up) some plays, it’s all of us, it is not just (me). It’s a whole collective unit.”
The Steelers lost strong safety DeShon Elliott to a knee injury in the first half against the Jets. Pittsburgh quickly signed veteran Jabrill Peppers this week to help fill the void. Either Peppers or Chuck Clark will get the start next to free safety Juan Thornhill.
Peppers found himself available after somewhat surprisingly being cut by New England last month, the first time since he was drafted by Cleveland in the first round in 2017 — five spots ahead of Steelers star linebacker TJ Watt — that Peppers found himself looking for work.
While the phone rang at times over the last couple of weeks, Peppers was intent on waiting to see if a good fit popped up. He believes he's found it in Pittsburgh.
“It was a lot of anxiety, a different feeling for me,” Peppers said. “But like I said, you play a long time in this league, you’re going to get traded a cut, so just roll with the punches and do what you've got to do.”
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AP Sports Writer Andrew Destin in Seattle contributed to this report.
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