Seahawks, Bobby Wagner agree to 3-year, $54M contract extension
Jul 26, 2019, 5:32 PM | Updated: 7:01 pm
Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner was prepared to play the final year of his contract in 2019. (AP)
(AP)
The contract speculation that been clouding Seahawks’ practices this offseason, and had since carried over into the first two days of training camp, came to an end late Friday afternoon when Seattle announced a three-year extension for All-Pro middle linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Seahawks training camp preview: Linebackers
According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapaport, the deal is worth $54 million and includes $40.2 million in guarantees, making Wagner the league’s highest-paid inside linebacker.
Wagner’s $18 million salary surpasses that of C.J. Mosley, who reset the market for inside linebackers when he signed a five-year, $85 million deal with the Jets in March. Despite being two years older than Mosley, a contract extension for Wagner was expected to break that record; since signing his last contract extension in 2015, Wagner has accrued more tackles, sacks, touchdowns, and quarterbacks hits than both Mosley and 49ers’ Kwon Alexander, both of whom were the league’s highest-paid linebacker prior to Friday.
“We feel blessed that we were able to draft Bobby in 2012, keep him here on a second contract, and now to have him sign a third contract is a huge deal for us,” general manager John Schneider said in a statement. “Everyone in the whole building is excited, I’m sure his teammates are going to be very excited. He exemplifies everything that we’re all about, his professionalism, intensity, the way he handles himself off the field. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’ll go down not only as one of the greatest Seahawks, but also as one of the greatest middle linebackers in NFL history. It’s a major deal for our organization moving into the future.”
Wagner, who turned 29 last month, represented himself in negotiations with Seattle. The veteran has attended all team practices, though he’s opted to remain off the field in an effort to avoid injury before securing a deal.
Wagner, a five-time Pro Bowler, is one of two players in the NFL to have been voted to a Pro Bowl and named a First-Team All-Pro in each of the last three seasons (the other being Rams’ defensive tackle Aaron Donald). Over the course of his seven year career, he has racked up 981 tackles, 16.5 sacks, nine interceptions and three touchdowns.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
