One day after reaching a three-year, $72million contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks, wide receiver D.K. Metcalf came clean with his negotiating process.
"I was going to be here, as much as I bluffed to [general manager] John [Schneider]," Metcalf said. ''I wasn't leaving, just to let you all know. I wanted to be here. I wanted to play here and I'm glad that we got something done.''
Metcalf met the media Friday morning with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider at his side.
"It was a stressful process, but glad that it’s over," Metcalf said.
According to reports, Metcalf’s deal includes a $30m signing bonus, the highest ever for a wide receiver. His $24m yearly average salary ties him with Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs as the NFL’s sixth-highest paid receiver.
"We had goals that we talked about, both on the team side and our side," Metcalf said. "But this is just an amazing moment to where I do get to help my family and the state of Mississippi and the surrounding communities for years to come."
Metcalf made $911,914 last season, when he had 75 receptions and a career-high 12 touchdown catches despite playing through a foot injury for most of the season.
His 3170 receiving yards are the most by any Seahawk in his first three seasons, while his 29 touchdowns over that span are one shy of the club record.
"It just hit me as I was sitting up here. I told my parents, and I was just smiling on the phone," he said. "My mom started crying, dad started crying, but I was just smiling. Then when I sat up here, it just hit me like, it’s here. D.K., it’s time for you to step up."
After he did not take part in last month’s mandatory mini-camp and watched the first two practices of training camp, Metcalf is expected to participate in the Seahawks’ next practice on Saturday.
"Seeing him to be so much more than just a football player is a great thrill for me," Carroll said. "Everybody talks about how he’s a great athlete, he’s a beast, he’s all this kind of stuff. I don’t like that talk about him. This guy, he’s a complete person and he has so much to offer."