It’s been a lot of fun watching the Seahawks’ wide receivers over the last few seasons because while many teams across the NFL struggle to have just one star wideout, the Hawks have been pretty fortunate to have a couple on their roster over the last few years.
This year, the Hawks will take it up a notch. They have the ability and the opportunity to truly be the best wide receiver corps in the National Football League this time around. With DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and the addition of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the Hawks have three incredible wideouts who could all rank inside the Top 40 by the time the year ends.
DK Metcalf will obviously be the number-one option this year. Through his first four seasons in the league, Metcalf has at least 900 yards in those four and has eclipsed 1000 yards twice. Last year, he went for 1048. In the four seasons, he has had 35 touchdown receptions and has been a menace at the goal line or even on a seam, as it seems nearly impossible to keep up with him. Add in his massive size, which is that of a gigantic human, and he is a nightmare for defenders and secondaries across the league.
PFF ranks Metcalf as the 14th best wide receiver in the game, saying, “One of the most physically imposing receivers in the game, Metcalf brings size and athleticism that most cornerbacks can’t hope to match. He is an elite deep threat who has added multiple strings to his bow while in the NFL. Passes thrown his way over his professional career have generated a 105.7 passer rating.”
The number two option is Tyler Lockett. These two have combined to be one of the most lethal and scary wide receiver duos in the league over the last four years. Lockett is now 30 years old, so we know that in wide receiver years, that typically means the prime is coming to an end, and a new era for the receiver is incoming. Lockett is still productive; there is no doubt about it. Over the last four seasons, he has over 1000 yards receiving, and he has reeled in eight or more touchdowns in each of those seasons. Lockett has a knack for beating the secondary and fitting a catch into the smallest amount of space to make unreal catches. It does feel like he is the perfect complement to pair with a guy like Metcalf.
PFF ranks Lockett as the 23rd-best wide receiver in the game, and they say this, “Lockett’s peak may be behind him now that he will be 31 during the 2023 season, but he remains an extremely effective receiver who has thrived as an undersized player throughout his career. Lockett has some of the best hands in the game, having dropped three passes over the past two years and only 3.8% of catchable targets over his entire time in the NFL.”
Those two alone make for a great duo. In fact, teams with two receivers inside the top 23 consist of just the Dolphins, 49ers, Buccaneers, Eagles, and Bengals. The list is not long, and two have two guys of that quality who headline your list is pretty special.
But it gets even better because the Hawks wisely added Smith-Njigba in the 2023 NFL Draft, which showed great awareness that Lockett might not be able to produce at the level for the foreseeable future, so they went out and got one of the best wide receivers in this year’s class.
This is a guy who set records at Ohio State for receiving yards in a year with over 1600 and catches in a game with 15. According to NFL.com, this is what the Hawks are getting: “Smith-Njigba is a possession slot receiver who lacks the shake to separate underneath and the speed to run past defenses. He’s tough in the middle of the defense and has proven he can make catches in congestion. Smith-Njigba will need to fine-tune his route running to give himself his best chance to succeed at the next level. It is impossible to ignore his monster finish to the 2021 season, and he has starting slot potential, but the speed concerns coupled with an injury-plagued 2022 season threaten to negatively impact his draft stock.”
On top of that, his NFL comparison is Jarvis Landry, a guy who once racked up five consecutive seasons of 975 receiving yards or more and has reeled in 38 touchdowns since 2014.
The fact that the Hawks now have three legitimate number one guys who could be the top starter on other teams around the league makes them incredibly scary, and it shouldn’t be overlooked as lists come out ranking the best wide receiver rooms in the league.
