It may be the fact John Metchie is coming off an ACL injury sustained in December, or it could be that he went to the moribund Houston Texans. Either way, the former Alabama wideout is already being overlooked.
Gregg Rosenthal from NFL.com released his admittedly “incredibly early” predictions for the 2022 rookie receiver yardage rankings, and Metchie was noticeably absent from the list.
Somehow Detroit Lions receiver Jameson Williams, who is also coming off an ACL injury the same as Metchie, was able to make the top-9 list.
The Lions traded up from No. 32 to No. 12 to take my favorite wideout in this class, and they didn’t even have to give up that much to get him. I couldn’t love the decision more, especially for a franchise that knows it’s not competing for a title yet in 2022. Coming off a torn ACL, Williams may not play until November and may not be his best self until the 2023 season.
Either Metchie belongs on the list the same as Williams or neither does, especially since it was noted that the Lions’ receiver may not play until November. How many yards is he going to rack up to even make the preliminary list?
Metchie should be ready to go by training camp. Alabama football team doctor, Dr. Lyle Cain from Andrews Sports Medicine, who performed the ACL surgery on Metchie, noted that he was doing well a month after his surgery.
General manager Nick Caserio was aware of Metchie’s injury and had a plan in place if they took him.
“Take that information, here’s what it is, here’s what the expectation is,” said Caserio. “What’s the nature of the injury? Okay, here’s the recovery. He will be ready by X. Okay, great. Then you sort of plan accordingly. That’s kind of how we handle it.”
Football games aren’t won in May. So long as Metchie is healthy and contributing to wins in the fall is what Houston sports fans are really looking forward to.
