Big Ray Roberts: Why Seahawks should keep DK; O-line thoughts

Feb 20, 2024, 1:48 PM

DK Metcalf of the Seattle Seahawks runs with the ball against the 49ers in 2023. (Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)

(Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)

Seattle Sports

Former NFL offensive lineman and current Seahawks Radio Network analyst Ray Roberts joined Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk on Tuesday, and there were a few interesting nuggets to come out of the conversation.

New OC Ryan Grubb sees Seahawks’ WR trio similar to UW stars

Here’s a look at three things that stand out.

The Seattle Seahawks’ DK Metcalf question

Last week, Seattle Sports’ Mike Salk brought up the possibility of trading Pro Bowl wide receiver DK Metcalf for draft picks to help fill other holes on the Seahawks’ roster. Does “Big Ray” think it’s a good idea? Not quite.

“If you get rid of DK Metcalf, then you better make sure on the outside that JSN is that dude,” Roberts said.

JSN is Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who was the No. 20 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft out of Ohio State. He had 628 receiving yards and four touchdowns in 11 games as a rookie, but he never had a breakout game in 2023 with his career-high for a single game sitting at 63 yards.

“His skill set doesn’t seem like he’s the No. 1 dude in an NFL offense, just the way I see it,” Roberts said of Smith-Njigba. “But DK is such a big-time, big home run player.”

There’s one more reason Roberts said the Seahawks may want to hang onto the 6-foot-4, 235-pound Metcalf: new head coach Mike Macdonald, who is coming off two successful years as Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator.

“Mike Macdonald is bringing over that that get in your face, physical style of football, and DK is that,” he said.

Who is the Hawks’ best offensive lineman?

The Seahawks have a pair of promising linemen entering their third seasons in the NFL in left tackle Charles Cross, the team’s top pick at No. 9 overall in 2022, and right tackle Abraham Lucas, who was a third-rounder in the same draft.

What does Roberts make of them at this point?

“I think Charles Cross, when he was healthy, was doing better in the run game. He wasn’t always a real physical dude in the run game – he was kind of getting that way. And I think he’s going to be a really good pass protector, too. I think he does a really good job, but every now and again (he gets) just a little bit too far up the field and people come underneath him, but that’s a technique thing. I think he has it all.”

And yet it’s Lucas who impresses Roberts the most. The only thing is Lucas, a WSU product from Everett, missed 10 games last season due to a lingering knee injury.

“The real true meat eater on that offensive line, when he’s healthy, is Abe Lucas,” Roberts said. “… You just don’t know what that knee is going to be.”

Adding to the O-line

What does the market for offensive linemen look like this offseason?

“In free agency, there’s not a whole lot of good, top, high-end guards and centers that are available,” Roberts said. “There’s only like maybe two that are decent, and the rest of them are pretty much what you have on your roster so then you’re going to have to figure out a combination of the dudes you already have and then finding some someone in the draft.”

The good news there?

“The Seahawks have always done well trading down and getting extra picks and all that kind of stuff,” Roberts said, “so we’ll see what they come up with.”

Listen to the full Brock and Salk conversation with Ray Roberts in the podcast at this link or in the player near the top of this post.