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          NFL Nation

          DK Metcalf emerges with Tyler Lockett to give Seahawks two No. 1 wide receivers

          • Brady Henderson, ESPNNov 3, 2020, 11:00 AM
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              Brady Henderson is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN. Henderson covers the Seattle Seahawks. He joined ESPN in 2017 covering the team for Seattle Sports 710-AM. You can follow him via Twitter @BradyHenderson.

          SEATTLE -- DK Metcalf has the superhero build, rare speed and man-among-boys strength. Tyler Lockett has the savvy route running, penchant for improbable catches and a longer history with quarterback Russell Wilson. Both have the eye-popping numbers.

          So who is the Seattle Seahawks' No. 1 wide receiver?

          This season, it seems to depend on the week.

          Seven days after Lockett turned in the second-most productive performance by a wide receiver in franchise history, Metcalf took his turn Sunday with the best day of his career: 12 catches on 15 targets for 161 yards and two touchdowns.

          Not that Lockett (four catches for 33 yards) minded taking a back seat as Metcalf stood out in the Seahawks' 37-27 win over the San Francisco 49ers.

          "We're so fortunate, and those guys are awesome about it," coach Pete Carroll said. "What did Tyler get today? I don't even know what his numbers were. But imagine, he got 20 targets last week, then we come back this week and it goes the other way and everybody's fine about it, and everybody just takes what comes their way ... We're very fortunate, and they're both so unique."

          The rest of the NFL -- and LeBron James, too -- is learning there aren't many players like Metcalf.

          The first of his two scores Sunday came on a crossing route that initially looked like a modest gain. But Metcalf turned upfield near the sideline, got a block from tight end Jacob Hollister and outran San Francisco's defense to the end zone for a 46-yard touchdown, showing the 4.33 speed he used to chase down Budda Baker after he intercepted Wilson last week.

          Metcalf fought through a hold from cornerback Emmanuel Moseley to catch his second touchdown on a 2-yard slant in the end zone.

          "He's just so frickin' tough," Carroll said. "Whether he's blocking guys, or whether he's catching the ball, or they smack him when the ball arrives and he stands over those guys when they fall off of him. When he caught the ball on the crossing route, I started screaming that they weren't going to get him -- right when he was way over there -- because he's just too fast. He just circled the whole defense and put it in the end zone, and I don't even think they touched him. It was a great play.

          "We're so lucky to have him, and to have him growing and emerging into such a dominant football player. He's really something."

          Metcalf leads the team in receiving yards with 680 to Lockett's 575. Lockett has the edge in receptions (49 to 36) and targets (63 to 60). Both have seven touchdowns to tie for the NFL lead.

          No pair of NFL wide receivers has more combined touchdown catches this season, and only the Carolina Panthers' Robby Anderson and DJ Moore (1,310) have combined for more yards. Since the start of last season, when Metcalf was a rookie, he and Lockett are fourth in combined receiving yards (3,212) and first in touchdown catches (29), according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          The Lockett-Metcalf duo surely would have ranked higher last season had the Seahawks thrown the ball as much as they are now. Either way, it's quite the luxury for Wilson, who has two receivers who would be the clear-cut No. 1 options on a lot of teams.

          "We have so many guys that can step up and step in, so many great players," Wilson said. "But those two guys, arguably two of the best receivers in the game, in my opinion."

          Only once in franchise history have two Seahawks wide receivers topped 1,000 yards in the same season. That was in 1995, when Joey Galloway (1,039) and Brian Blades (1,001) both barely did so. At their pace -- both well over halfway there seven games into the season -- Metcalf (1,554 projected yards) and Lockett (1,314) would blow that combined total out of the water.

          "Me and Tyler feed off of each other very well," Metcalf said. "We don't care who gets the credit or who gets the shine one week because he has my back no matter what and I have his no matter what. Like I said, shout out to [David Moore] and Freddie [Swain]. They come up clutch every time they come into the game. It just speaks highly of our receiver room and the standard that we hold each other to."