DK Metcalf ran a 10.36 (10.37 rounded up) 100m against professional competition at the USATF Golden Games. The Seattle Seahawks star took on some of the sports best in the prelims and was unable to advance after finishing in last place (9th) in his heat. The race was impressive for a large athlete like Metcalf and one who hasn’t specialized in the event for a long period of time. While it is hard to tell what his ceiling in the event is, this performance shows promise.
Right out of the blocks, the NFL wide receiver was able to put a good start together. At about 30 meters, it seemed that he had made it to his peak in the race. While he held steady over the next 40 meters, in the end, he didn’t have enough to hold on for the win. The Olympic Trials standard of 10.05 was not reached by anyone in the preliminary heats. Cravon Gillespie took the win in the second heat with a 10.11.
Great start for @Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf.
He ended up finishing his 100m heat in 9th with a time of 10.36.@usatf // #JourneyToGold pic.twitter.com/OSPrrMZFVe
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) May 9, 2021
While his time was impressive, let’s be honest and open here. The field he ran against will likely not produce an Olympian this year. It was a decent, not good, or great field of sprinters. With top runners like Noah and Josephus Lyles, Erryion Knighton, and others running the 200m in this meet, Metcalf shined more than he would have. There was not a single sub-10 second performance in the prelims. However, what if more football players decide to take the track route?
There are plenty of speedsters in the NFL that could have had and could still have careers in track and field. One of the biggest losses to the track world was when Robert Griffin III chose football over hurdling and then went through a series of awful injuries. It would be great for track if guys like Metcalf and Tyreek Hill took the sport seriously in the future.
