Schneider admitted the team was “very disappointed” in the timing of Metcalf’s trade request becoming public, as it overshadowed the release of Tyler Lockett and the team’s hopes to celebrate the veteran.
The GM didn’t rule out the possibility that Metcalf could play for the Seahawks next season but made it clear the club will do what’s best for the team, not necessarily sending the receiver where he wants to play.
“The thing to understand here is that our responsibility to (Seahawks chair) Jody Allen, the 12s, first and foremost, is doing what’s absolutely best for the organization, and then what’s best for the the player,” he said. “Hopefully, both those things merge, and it’s an ideal situation. Sometimes that happens, sometimes it doesn’t. Hopefully in this situation it does, and that would be great. But worst-case scenario, I mean, we have an amazing, explosive, powerful athlete playing receiver for us again in 2025. So we’ll see where this goes.”
Schneider stated the obvious, noting he’d like to settle the situation before next month’s NFL Draft.
Metcalf has one year with roughly $18 million left on his contract and wants a new deal that vaults him back into the upper echelon of wideouts. The three-year, $72 million extension signed in 2022 has been leapfrogged by numerous receivers since, putting Metcalf’s $24 million per year deal 13th at his position.
The Seahawks will likely ask for a lot in return for trading their best receiver, especially given the free-agent market and a shallower draft at the position. But given Metcalf’s contract desires, they’ll likely land lower than the initial demand.
Schneider said he’s not worried about Metcalf becoming a distraction if no deal comes to fruition and is forced to play out the final year of that pact.
“No, I think DK’s a very good communicator,” Schneider said. “He’s a guy that understands the business. He’s a businessman himself. I think he understands that we’re going to head down this road. He understands that we’re going to do what’s best for the organization, and that if things don’t fall the way he may want, that there’s a good chance he could end up being here.
“And at that point, we all turn the corner and move forward. So that’s the way it works. Through this whole process, he’s been extremely professional and respectful.”
Schneider might not be worried about Metcalf being a Seahawks distraction in 2025 because he knows he’ll move on in the next month or so. Trading their top wideout after cutting Lockett would supremely hurt Seattle’s passing attack. However, given how openly Schneider discussed the possibility, it sounds like the club is willing to move forward.
