Steelers fans did not need long to get restless with DK Metcalf.
Pittsburgh opened the season with a 20-13 win over the Atlanta Falcons in a game that was messy from start to finish, and Metcalf’s first outing in the black and gold did little to calm anybody down. He finished with four catches for 40 yards on 10 targets, but the numbers barely capture how rough the day looked. He was charged with at least two drops and picked up two offensive pass interference penalties.
That kind of box score only tells part of the story. Metcalf’s issues were spread across the game: missed chances, body-positioning problems, and flags that kept killing drives. Those are the same trouble spots that have followed him for years, even back when he was an All-Pro in 2020.
There was also at least one moment where the officiating seemed to go against him on the other side of the equation. One pass looked like a catch if A.J. Terrell had not grabbed away Metcalf’s right arm without a penalty.
Still, the biggest concern for Pittsburgh is simpler than any one missed call. Metcalf was not a dependable target for Aaron Rodgers.
Michael Pittman Jr., by comparison, caught all three of his targets for 58 yards. If that trend keeps going, Pittman could end up becoming Rodgers’ preferred option, and that would put Metcalf’s contract under even more scrutiny.
The fan reaction came fast.
And since social media can produce an echo chamber, here’s what our SB Nation brethren at Behind The Steel Curtain wrote:
This was a terrible showing from Metcalf. The Steelers receiver was called for a pair of offensive pass interferences in this contest.
Matcalf was targeted 10 times in the game, but finished with just four catches for 40 yards. The most deflating part of this performance, though, were the crucial drops.
Rodgers and Metcalf seemed to be just a tick off timing wise form each other all game, resulting in a few downfield passes bouncing off the hands of Metcalf. In the third quarter, Rodgers hit Metcalf over the middle right in the hands and the receiver was not able to bring it in.
The play resulted in a resounding boo from the crowd. If the Steelers offense is going to take a step up in 2026, Metcalf is going to need to step up.
That said, one ugly Sunday does not erase who Metcalf has been. He was one of the most productive receivers in Seahawks history across six seasons in Seattle, so this is not some lost cause or draft mistake.
But his game has always come with clear limits, and the explosive downfield plays that worked so well with Russell Wilson and, to a lesser extent, Geno Smith, may not translate the same way with late-career Aaron Rodgers. The two-high coverage shells around the league have also made life tougher for him as a vertical threat.
Metcalf also recently addressed his Seattle exit in an interview with The Athletic, after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl. He said he had no regrets.
“I live with my decisions every day… they’re very well thought-out decisions to where I know the consequences, know my benefits from every decision that I make,” Metcalf says. “I got brothers on (the Seahawks), still friends on the team.
So I congratulated them, but nobody’s sour over an ex unless you really miss them. So no, I wasn’t sour.”
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