The Los Angeles Rams made their biggest splash of the offseason on Thursday when they agreed to terms on a five-year, $50 million deal with former Seattle Seahawks All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner. After losing Von Miller to the Buffalo Bills, signing Wagner gives them a Hall of Fame level player at all three defensive phases.
Wagner was not expecting to be a free agent when the offseason began, however. The Seahawks absolutely had the option to reload around him defensively, and around Russell Wilson on offense. Instead, they traded Wilson to the Denver Broncos and released Wagner outright.
Wagner received plenty of interest, but the strongest push came from his hometown team. The Rams ultimately found a compromise with him after being unwilling to meet his $11 million asking price in 2022. Shortly after the agreement between Wagner and the Rams was announced, the All-Pro linebacker took to Instagram to thank the Seahawks and express excitement for this new chapter:
In this post, Wagner confirms that his exit with the Seahawks was not positive. Shortly after his release, Wagner took to social media to complain that Seattle did not even inform him of his release. But even still, his love for the city wouldn’t go away so quickly.
But to make up for the negative exit, Wagner gets to face the team he spent all of those years with twice per season. And he gets to do it while playing alongside Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey near his hometown of Ontario, California. For Wagner, this was undoubtedly the perfect opportunity at this stage of his career.
Despite heavy pressure from the Baltimore Ravens, Wagner and the Rams were able to get a deal done that keeps him in L.A. and contending for Super Bowls for the foreseeable future. Wagner expressed his excitement in his Instagram post, as he prepares to share the field with two of the league’s best players.
Les Snead and Sean McVay working on contract extensions
The architects of the Rams’ success — general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay — are both currently working on contract extensions. Rams COO Kevin Demoff explained that it’s absolutely a priority for the two to be under a long-term extension by the time the season begins.
