Video: DK Metcalf Finishes a Respectable Last in USA Track and Field Event
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf may not have qualified for the Olympics, but he put on an impressive performance during his 100-meter dash on Sunday.
Metcalf first hinted he would be running in the USA Track and Field Golden Games and Distance Open in Walnut, California, last week and finished the heat in last place with a 10.36-second, 100-meter dash.
“I’m just happy to be here, excited to have the opportunity, thank God for the opportunity to run against world-class athletes like this,” Metcalf said. “Just to test my speed against world-class athletes like this. . . . They do this for a living. This is very different from football speed.”
Before the race, Metcalf's Olympic ambitions caught the attention of the track world.
“There’s not a sprinter in the world who will let this guy think he can run with them. They will destroy him,” said track agent and former 110-meter hurdler Renaldo Nehemiah, who also played three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. “It’s a noble gesture but an exercise in futility. It really is. No offense to DK, I’m a fan of his. I applaud him for wanting to find out — and find out he will.”
After the race, broadcasters emphasized that Metcalf isn’t a sport-specific athlete but rather an "all encompassing athlete."
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tweeted his thoughts after the heat, saying 10.36 is crazy and that he respected the time.
After the heat, broadcasters said Metcalf's ability to keep up with the pack should encourage every fast NFL guy to give it a go
Ato Boldon, the former Olympic sprinter who called the race for NBC Sports, said he was impressed with Metcalf’s performance and that he believes that some of the fastest players in the NFL could have solid track careers with the right training, per NBC Sports.
“This should encourage every fast NFL guy,” Boldon said. “Tyreek Hill, are you listening? This should encourage every fast NFL guy that the Olympic trials are not that far away.”
Before the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl last year, Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill said he was serious about his goal of qualifying for the U.S. Olympics.
It seems Mahomes thinks the Cheetah's turn has come.