PITTSBURGH -- Shortly after Aaron Rodgers lugged his suitcase into the dorms at Saint Vincent College, he discovered DK Metcalf would be his training camp suitemate. The likely future Hall of Fame quarterback gave his new top receiving threat a lengthy homework assignment.
Each week, watch the opponent and prepare a scouting report. Strengths. Weaknesses. Tendencies. Coverages. Ways to attack the opposing DBs.
"I kind of forgot about it," Rodgers said after the Steelers' Week 1 win against the New York Jets. "On Tuesday, guess what I got? I got a text message with his thoughts. It wasn't a short one. It was like he put a lot of time into it.
"That's what everybody loves about DK ... he really cares about it."
The NFL is full of players who won the genetic lottery. Metcalf, though, hit the Powerball while everyone else is cashing scratch-offs. At 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, Metcalf is tall enough to look 6-5 tight end Pat Freiermuth in the eye. With a 4.3 40-yard dash at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine, he's fast enough to run stride-for-stride with 5-9 speedster and former collegiate track star Calvin Austin III. After putting up 27 bench press reps at the combine, he's about as strong as the Steelers' starting offensive tackles, who each posted 29 reps on the same drill.
Joey Porter Jr. calls Metcalf a "freak of nature." Rodgers says he's a "specimen." Others have used the word "unicorn" to describe the rare mix of size, speed and strength. He looks like a man among boys. A video game create-a-player in real life.
But physical gifts, even those as impressive as Metcalf's, can only take an athlete so far. Early in his Steelers tenure, it's how Metcalf works behind the scenes that stands out to Rodgers and others.
"Man, he is a professional, but I can't say that I was surprised by it," coach Mike Tomlin said. "You do your research (before making a trade). This is a small league in the big scheme of things. Certainly, you know about the significant players, not only their talents, but their relationship with the game, their lifestyle, if you will. All those things were really positive components of his profile and one of the reasons why we were really excited about acquiring him."
On Sunday -- six months after the Steelers landed the Pro Bowl receiver in a blockbuster trade -- Metcalf will meet his former team for the first time. Ask Metcalf how he's preparing for the Seattle Seahawks, and he'll tell you, just like any other game.
"Y'all gonna make it a big deal," he said. "But I'm not."
That may sound like a cliché -- until you hear the stories of how Metcalf works when no one is watching.
"I take this game very seriously," Metcalf said. "My preparation speaks for itself. I'm (always) going to prepare like it's going to be like my last game, or like it's my first game. My preparation is the same."
Metcalf's desire to be great began at the earliest age. His father, Terrence Metcalf, played seven seasons in the NFL as an offensive lineman, a position where life is about doing the dirty work without expecting the credit. Terrence passed on his 6-4 frame and the importance of playing physically to DK. Talking with DK Metcalf -- who often punctuates sentences with "yes, sir" or "yes, ma'am" -- there's a level of humility rarely seen in skill position players who dominate headlines and stat lines.
"He was real quiet at first," second-year receiver Roman Wilson said. "All business. All class. Good guy. Everything you want out of a leader and a football player."
Rodgers got his first taste of Metcalf's drive even before the quarterback signed with the Steelers. As the QB was working through his process and evaluating his options in free agency, Metcalf invited Rodgers to throw with him at UCLA ... at 6 a.m. Rodgers persuaded Metcalf to push that meeting back -- but only a bit -- to 8 a.m.
Once the Steelers arrived at training camp, that work ethic stood out to the rest of his teammates, as well. Each time Metcalf caught a pass, he raced to the end zone. It didn't matter what drill the Steelers were running; Metcalf finished it.
"Routes on air. Individual drills. No matter what we're doing, you catch a ball, you finish in the end zone," Wilson said. "And it's not like a jog to the end zone. It's a full-speed sprint. That was a big thing that stuck out to me."
It's about more than just sheer effort for Metcalf. Receiver Scotty Miller said that in the meeting room, Metcalf often speaks up to ask questions or give his teammates tips. For example, Metcalf gave insight into how Jets corner Sauce Gardner plays certain routes ahead of the Week 1 matchup. There's also an attention to detail.
"He's asking about splits," Freiermuth said. "He's asking about formations. He's asking about adjustments in certain routes. I think it's cool to see a guy of his caliber take that much pride in getting everything right, even down to the details of a split or the depth of a route."
Metcalf is meticulous about how he ends each practice. He has to finish with a catch of some sort, almost like how many basketball players need to end on a made basket.
"Just ending everything on a positive note," Metcalf said. "If I get a drop, I've always got a big eraser, as (Russell Wilson) would call it my rookie year... like a shooter, you know, ending on a make. Or in the weight room, I always do one extra rep of everything. So just the way that I carry myself and just the way that I view life is always ending on some positive."
It's a beautiful thing when a team's best players are the hardest workers. That hasn't always been the case for the Steelers, specifically in the receiver room. In the brief three years that Omar Khan has been the general manager, he's traded away a number of receivers who had the talent but not always the right attitude to match, including Chase Claypool, Diontae Johnson and, most recently, George Pickens.
"I've been around a lot of guys that are physically gifted, maybe not quite as much as him, but a lot of guys that have all the ability in the world, but it doesn't pan out," Miller said. "I think it's just his approach to the game, the way he comes to work every single day, just trying to get better, his humility and how he goes about his business."
By trading for Metcalf and then rewarding him with a four-year, $132 million contract extension, the Steelers not only changed the look and feel of their offense. They also put a new leader in their receiver room to set the standard for younger players like Wilson and Austin, who are both playing on rookie deals and looking to establish themselves.
"I look at him like he's the blueprint," Wilson said. "Not only is he big, strong, fast, but he has everything off the field. How he carries himself in the meeting room, how he carries himself off the field, taking care of his body, everything. He's the blueprint."
Added receiver Ben Skowronek: "I've been fortunate enough in my career that I've played with some really good receivers. He practices harder than anyone I've been with. The passion for the game is there. ... He just loves to compete. He loves to win. He loves to play football. He's a guy that if I'm going to war, I want him with me."