It’s been quite a week for DK Metcalf.
On Wednesday, he proposed to his longtime girlfriend, Normani. On Thursday, he signed his new $150 million contract with the Steelers that makes him one of the NFL’s highest-paid receivers.
“I found a new home here, found a new fiancee,” Metcalf said Thursday afternoon at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. “Everything is falling in line the way God planned it to be.”
Metcalf spoke with Russell Wilson, his former teammate in Seattle, on Wednesday, but it had nothing to do with whether Wilson will be throwing footballs to him next season. Wilson and his wife, Ciara, introduced Metcalf to Normani five years ago.
Normani, who is now a solo artist, used to be in the group Fifth Harmony. She was with Metcalf on Thursday and flashed her ring to the assembled media at his news conference.
Metcalf said he does not have any concerns about the Steelers quarterback situation after being recruited by coach Mike Tomlin, general manager Omar Khan and team president Art Rooney II on Sunday night. The Steelers continue to wait on word from Aaron Rodgers, their preferred choice, but they have not closed the door on a Wilson return.
“When I hopped on the phone, they made me feel welcome and they made me feel like they had the right decision and knew who would be throwing the football,” Metcalf said.
Metcalf had his best NFL season when Wilson was his quarterback in 2020. He earned second-team All-Pro honors after catching 83 passes for 1,303 yards and scoring 10 touchdowns. He played with Wilson for three seasons, and they remain close friends.
Metcalf relayed a conversation he had with Wilson last fall when Wilson told Metcalf he would “love it here [in Pittsburgh].”
Metcalf did not disclose why he asked for a trade from the Seahawks, the team that selected him in the second round of the 2019 draft. But it didn’t take long for the Steelers to get on the phone after that news broke.
Metcalf was happy the Steelers were interested. He has a relationship with Tomlin going back to his days at Ole Miss when Tomlin was on the scouting trail.
“I went back to the meeting we had at the combine,” Metcalf said. “He kept that same rapport with me. It just felt like the right decision. It just felt right hearing his voice again. He sees the type of player I am. My play style jumps off the tape to him.”
At 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds, Metcalf looks like a tight end and enjoys playing the game with a physical style. He credits his father, Terrence, for his rugged playing style. Terrence Metcalf, an offensive lineman, played seven seasons in the NFL with the Chicago Bears.
“I’m a physical receiver,” he said. “I just try to play the game a different way.”
Metcalf will be in a receiver room that includes George Pickens, Calvin Austin III, Roman Wilson, Scotty Miller and Ben Skowronek. Metcalf said he did not ask Pickens to wear No. 14, his old number in Seattle. His new number is No. 4, and Normani was wearing his jersey at his news conference.
Metcalf does not believe there will be any issues with having two star receivers on the same team.
“Football is the ultimate team game,” he said. “First off, you shouldn’t be on the team if everyone doesn’t want the football. From the little conversations that we had in passing, [Pickens is] a great player, watching from afar. The receiver coach called him ‘freak show,’ and I think that's a fitting name for him with the circus catches that he makes. But I'm just here to try to provide any wisdom or any knowledge that he allows me to and vice versa. I feel like there's some things that I can learn from him that he does.”
First Published: March 13, 2025, 11:02 p.m.
Updated: March 14, 2025, 12:53 p.m.
