Second-round NFL draft pick, 2020 Pro Bowl selection … Olympic qualifier? Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf is hoping he can add the latter to his growing list of career accomplishments when he competes at this weekend’s USATF Golden Games in Walnut, California. The 23-year-old is entered in the 100-meter dash with hopes of qualifying for next month’s Olympic Trials in Oregon.
An exceptional athlete who competed as a standout hurdler in high school (he was state runner-up in both the 110-meter hurdles and triple jump in his native Mississippi), the 6’4,” 229-pound Metcalf clocked a blistering 4.33 forty-yard dash at his NFL Combine in 2019, the third-fastest time by a receiver that year (Parris Campbell and Andy Isabella both came in at 4.31). Metcalf’s elite wheels were on full display when he miraculously caught up to Cardinals safety Budda Baker on a 90-yard interception return last season, at one point reaching a top speed of 22.64 mph.
The 100-meter dash will be contested Sunday at Mount San Antonio (aka Mt. SAC) College with prelims beginning at 12:29 PM ET. Metcalf’s pursuit of Olympic glory, though rare, is not unprecedented among NFL players. Former Bucs return specialist Jeff Demps, who is also hoping to represent America in Tokyo this summer, won silver in the 4-by-100-meter relay in London nine years ago, though he was eventually stripped of his medal when teammate Tyson Gay admitted to using a banned substance. Marquise Goodwin, who would later go on to star for the Bills and 49ers, also participated in the London Games, finishing tenth in the long jump.
After a promising rookie year in 2019, Metcalf exploded last season, finishing with a franchise-record 1,303 receiving yards, good for seventh in the league behind only Stefon Diggs, Travis Kelce, DeAndre Hopkins, Justin Jefferson, Davante Adams and Calvin Ridley. Metcalf’s participation in this weekend’s track meet would indicate the hamstring injury that bothered him late last season is no longer a concern.
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