Rams Coach Sean McVay, LB Bobby Wagner Reveal Relationship
The Los Angeles Rams entered the offseason with several stars on their defense, headlined by cornerback Jalen Ramsey and defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
Still, the Rams' defense was largely middle-of-the-pack in points and yards allowed during their Super Bowl season, though they certainly did their part in the playoffs.
Los Angeles could've gone into the 2022 season just fine on the defensive side of the ball. Still, general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay have repeatedly proven that they're more than willing to be aggressive when the opportunity arises.
Needing a starter at the second level alongside second-year pro Ernest Jones and not holding a top-100 draft pick, the Rams knew they had to attack the free agent market.
Enter All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner, who terrorized the team for so many years in the NFC West as a member of the Seattle Seahawks.
Looking for weaknesses in Wagner's game? Don't. McVay's been trying since taking the head coaching job in 2017, but largely to no avail. Now with Wagner on the same sideline, McVay is eager to see the 32-year-old get to work.
“I don't know if there were any weaknesses to exploit. I think you're really just trying to figure out ways to eliminate the impact that he has on the game," McVay said. "He's been such a productive player for such a long period of time, but there are some subtleties and differences. Football’s still football and he's been a great player at a high level over the course of his career."
McVay's work on Wagner isn't just a one-way street. Long viewed as one of the game's best linebackers, Wagner knows quite a bit about the Rams' offense, one of many things McVay is excited to ask his new addition about.
"I like to pick these guys' brains, really learn how did he see our stuff? What has he seen from the landscape of the league? What are some things that they've done that maybe we could incorporate? He's such a mature, impressive human being that I've really just enjoyed getting to know him –the way he carries himself day in and day out. But his presence, his ability to communicate with a poise, I think rubs off on the rest of the guys when you try to create some frenetic paces, especially in these types of settings."
An eight-time All-Pro, including a fifth-place finish in the 2014 NFL MVP race, Wagner was the heart and soul of Seattle's defense for a decade. Since entering the league as a second-round pick in 2012, Wagner has yet to have a season without recording 100 tackles.
McVay is well aware of the caliber of player he has in the former Utah State Aggie but is now focused on getting him up to speed in Los Angeles, as the Seahawks largely ran the same defense during his entire tenure with the team.
"I've been really impressed with the guy that he's been in Seattle," said McVay. "They've had, for the most part, a very similar system continuity throughout his career there. Then it's very different in how quickly he picked up the terminology and those guys - the game just makes sense to them and they work at it and that's kind of what the interaction has been, but really enjoyed it so far.”
Wagner, twice the league's leading tackler (2016 and 2019), has enjoyed getting to match McVay's energy as colleagues rather than rivals, noting that they've been able to "feed off one another." After spending his entire career with coach Pete Carroll in Seattle, Wagner seems to be adjusting well to McVay, just his second professional coach.
"His energy has been crazy," Wagner stated. "We've been in constant communication, even in the offseason. Reaching out, just checking in and stuff like that. It's been cool. These last couple of months, being able to be coached by him has been a blessing for sure.”
McVay and Wagner have long shared mutual respect from opposing sidelines. Now planning to enter battle 17 times together, the pair are off to an energy-driven start.
