'They're Willing To Do Whatever To Win': Rams LB Bobby Wagner Explains Why He Chose L.A.
Less than an hour after Bobby Wagner was released by the Seattle Seahawks, he received a text message. The name on the other line? Los Angeles Rams star defensive lineman Aaron Donald.
Soon after, cornerback Jalen Ramsey made his pitch to Wagner about joining forces. Before Los Angeles general manager Les Snead could get in contact with Wagner, who elected to represent himself in free agency, the players were recruiting the linebacker to return home.
“I won’t go into details about what they said, but it was just (about) how they admired my game and if this was an opportunity for me to come to L.A., I should check it out," Wagner said at his introductory press conference. "That’s kind of what I did.”
Wagner, who will turn 32 this summer, is back where it all began. A native of Ontario, roughly 50 miles east of SoFi Stadium, the eight-time All-Pro is joining forces with a former foe to help build a super team and contend for another title.
Before signing on the dotted line, Wagner explored his options. He met with the Baltimore Ravens at their facility. He also spoke with the Dallas Cowboys about potentially reuniting with Dan Quinn, the Seahawks' defensive coordinator on the Super Bowl run in 2013.
In the end, Los Angeles had two things that Baltimore and Dallas didn't: family and a revenge game on the schedule. The Rams have two against Seattle each year.
“Playing the Seahawks twice a year was the cherry on top," Wagner said. "I’ll make sure they see me every time we play them. They’ll know where I’m at; I’ll make sure, I’ll tell them. It won’t be a quiet game for me.”
Wagner agreed to terms on a five-year contract that becomes flexible after the 2023 season. Essentially, it's a two-year deal worth $17.5 million that could expand to $23.5 million in incentives.
One of the big selling points for Wagner was the style of defense the Rams play in under defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. Los Angeles often runs a two-linebacker set when working in the 3-4 scheme.
It worked to a charm in 2020 under then-coordinator Brandon Staley. His top-rated defense landed him the Los Angeles Chargers opening. Last season, middle linebacker was the Achilles heel for Morris to duplicate similar results, but it didn't stop the Rams from winning their first time since
"They’re willing to do whatever they can to win," Wagner said of the Rams' defense. "But I think, too, is you have guys like that, players like that that are All-Pros in their own right, reach out to you and want to team up is special. And being a place where they want you to play there and want you to be there, it’s special.”
Wagner joins a unit that features an All-Pro at each level. Donald will control the trenches. Wagner takes command in the middle. Ramsey leads the secondary to promising results in coverage.
The cast of premier talent wasn't the main reason why Wagner chose to play in L.A., but it certainly didn't hurt the case. Another factor that went into his decision was his family ties, who haven't seen him play consistently since high school.
Otto Greule Jr, Getty Images
Said Wagner: "They always had to get on a plane. Now it's a drive. I'm excited to be in front of my family, be closer to home and re-establish myself.”
Snead told reporters that then-St. Louis was high on adding Wagner in the 2012 NFL Draft. Coming out of Utah State, the Rams had targeted him to be the pick with the No. 50 selection. Seattle had the same idea, selecting him three picks earlier at No. 47.
Snead joked how "about 1,000 tackles later, we get Bobby Wagner." Communication between the two sides move quickly after players reached out from the Rams' front.
Now, Wagner's story comes full circle.
"I wanted to be at a place that I could be happy and be a place that was close to home," Wagner said. "To be able to be in this situation, close to family, it was important to me."
