DANNY ONEIL

O’Neil: Bobby Wagner adds to Defensive Player of the Year case with biggest play of Seahawks’ win

Nov 26, 2017, 6:18 PM

Bobby Wagner's interception gave the Seahawks when they needed one on Sunday. (AP)...

Bobby Wagner's interception gave the Seahawks when they needed one on Sunday. (AP)

(AP)

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The best defensive player in the league made the most important play for Seattle’s offense in the first half of Sunday’s game.

That’s only partly a criticism of how Seattle’s offense played over the first two quarters.

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The rest is a huge compliment to not just the degree of difficulty but the importance of Bobby Wagner’s interception, as the surest-tackling linebacker in the league showed a softer side by corralling a pass that a 49ers wide receiver couldn’t.

“I kind of just took it away,” Wagner said.

Understated, which is typical for Wagner. Maybe that’s why he’s not always recognized for the superstar that he undoubtedly is, which is kind of strange when you think about it.

Linebackers are usually the guys picked to personify a dominant defense whether it was Jack Lambert in Pittsburgh, Mike Singletary in Chicago or Derrick Brooks in Tampa Bay.

Yet Richard Sherman’s mouth, Kam Chancellor’s hits and the size of Michael Bennett’s shoulder pads all tend to attract more attention in Seattle than the middle linebacker who simply plays with the consistency of a metronome as he racks up 100-tackle season after 100-tackle season.

He was credited with eight on Sunday against San Francisco, in case you didn’t notice, hitting triple digits for the sixth consecutive season since entering the league as a second-round pick in 2012. If Wagner’s not the leading candidate to be named the Defensive Player of the Year, he should be considering he’s got a shot at leading the league in tackles for a second consecutive season.

Just ask his coach what kind of season Wagner is having.

“As good as a defensive player can have,” Pete Carroll said. “I think he’s on top of everything. He’s great in the running game. He’s great in the pass game. He’s a fantastic rusher. He’s as good as you can hope for, he’s having a great season.”

Same was true last year when he had 167 tackles. And in 2014, when he came back after missing five games with a torn ligament in his foot and played so well in the final six games that he received a vote for NFL MVP from Tony Dungy, a Hall of Fame coach.

And given the injuries that Seattle’s defense has suffered, Wagner’s only going to become more important to the trajectory of the Seahawks’ season.

But in the first half of Sunday’s game, it wasn’t just the absences that Seattle’s defense had to make up for. It was the offense, too, as Seattle’s only possession inside the San Francisco 20 came courtesy of the pass that Wagner picked off.

“We felt like the offense needed a little bit of help,” Wagner said. “We felt like a turnover or something at that moment of the game would have been big for us, and it was.”

Seattle got the ball at the San Francisco 16 and two plays later scored the only touchdown of the first half, showing that sometimes the best offense is an even better defensive player.

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O’Neil: Bobby Wagner adds to Defensive Player of the Year case with biggest play of Seahawks’ win