Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner Continues to Awe Entering 12th Season: 'How?!'
RENTON, Wash. - With over 1,500 tackles, nine All-Pros, and a Super Bowl ring on his resume, Seattle Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner doesn't have anything left to prove. A strong argument can already be made that he will be a first ballot Hall of Famer whenever he decides to hang up his cleats.
But as he begins his 12th NFL season and second stint with the Seahawks, Wagner hasn't gotten the memo. The 33-year old arrived at the VMAC last week motivated to improve different areas of his game and somehow, even considering everything he has accomplished in the league to this point, one of the greatest defenders of his generation has managed to astound teammates and coaches alike in the first five practices of training camp.
On Sunday, for example, in front of a packed house on the berm, Wagner exploded out of his athletic stance and chased down speedy receiver DK Metcalf on an end around, forcing him to go out of bounds at the line of scrimmage for no gain. Later in the same practice, he ran stride for stride with DeeJay Dallas on a sluggo route downfield, staying in the running back's hip pocket and eventually breaking up the pass with the back of his helmet in the end zone.
“He’s moving really, really well. He looks like the guy that we’ve always known," coach Pete Carroll said of Wagner after Sunday's practice. "He’s having a blast with these guys and of course everyone has accepted him readily and all. It’s really pleasing to see him having so much fun and look so good.”
Kicking off his return to the Seahawks in style, Wagner has demonstrated that age is little more than a number, flying all over the field with the energy of a 25-year old while making highlight plays at every practice. Even on Monday when the pads came out, though he received few opportunities because of strong play from the defensive line, he made his way into the backfield to pop Bryant Koback for a loss.
Day in and day out, as he has done since he first game into the NFL as a second-round pick out of Utah State back in 2012, Wagner remains the model of consistency at linebacker. During football season, he sets his alarm for 5:30 AM, ensuring he's the first one at the facility to get to work each day, and he's typically the last one to leave the facility as well, exhibiting the drive of an all-time great.
Having learned how to be a pro from Wagner when he first joined Seattle as a third-round pick in 2015, receiver Tyler Lockett thinks the linebacker's longevity sometimes gets taken for granted because of how easy he makes it look on the field. Now in his ninth season and with a better perspective of what it takes to stay on top of your game into your 30s, he's even more amazed by what his long-time teammate continues to do between the lines.
“You look at a guy like Bobby, he’s been successful and consistent for so long, people just think it’s easy to get into year 12. The way my body feels in year nine, I ask myself ‘How do you even do that?'" Lockett said. "You see it early on, when I got here he did a great job taking care of his body and he still does now. He’s the first guy in and the last guy out. It says a lot because a lot of us want to get back home and see our families, but this is your job. You have to be able to do what gets you prepared and what gets you right for the game. The type of mindset and mentality that Bobby has, it’s a reason he’s still playing heading into year 12, especially as a linebacker.”
Once NFL players turn 30, speed typically is the first skill to decline and once it's gone, it's gone. Two years ago, Wagner seemed to have lost a step and while he still earned an All-Pro selection and Pro Bowl nod, he didn't make near as many impact plays with just three tackles for loss, his lowest total since 2015, and only one interception and one sack.
Going against conventional wisdom, however, as illustrated chasing down Metcalf and Dareke Young on end arounds and jet sweeps as well as his sensational downfield coverage against Dallas, Wagner looks faster at 33 than he did at 31. While his elite instincts help mitigate diminishing athleticism, he acknowledged that he dealt with injuries the past two seasons and since the Rams missed the playoffs last year, he was able to hit the restart button with a longer offseason.
Among the changes Wagner made, he told reporters he altered his diet and made tweaks to his typical offseason program. Moving as well as he has in years, the results on the field speak for themselves. As for whether or not he is faster, he's letting observers be the judge.
"I don’t know. I feel healthy," Wagner said when asked if he thought he had gotten faster. "I think the last couple seasons, I finished the season with injuries so I spent majority of the time trying to rehab the injury. Last year we didn’t play that long so I got a chance to regroup, reset my diet, reset my things I normally do in the offseason and just trying to be the best version of myself so I can help this team.”
Aiming to set a positive example for his young teammates, including free agent signing Devin Bush and second-year linebacker Vi Jones, Wagner has participated in each of Seattle's five training camp practices to this point. He didn't see quite as many snaps in Monday's practice, as the coaching staff will try to monitor his workload to ensure he stays healthy for the regular season.
As expected, Wagner has also been a vocal presence in the film room, leaning on his experience to help get other players up to speed before taking these lessons to the practice field.
Not looking to reinvent the wheel, Wagner attributes his continued success to a commitment to consistency, a strong support group around him that has helped him stay in peak shape, and his relentless drive to improve as the first one in and last one out every day. Finding ways to surprise after dominating for nearly a dozen seasons in the NFL and showing no signs of decline, it's clear the method to the madness still gets the job done.
“I’m just really consistent when it comes to taking care of my body. I’ve been blessed to work with a lot of great people outside of the building that’s been able to help me maintain my body that way that it is. Honestly, it’s just that. Just being committed to greatness and watching guys like Ray Lewis, Ken Norton and those guys that’s been around for a long time. Just doing the things that they’ve done that allowed them to play for a long time and just doing the same thing.”
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