All Seahawks

Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner Garners NFC Defensive Player of the Week

For the second time in his career, with both coming after games against San Francisco, Wagner was named the NFC's Defensive Player of the Week after producing 11 tackles, a pair of sacks, and four quarterback hits in a dominant outing.
Corbin K. Smith|
Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner Garners NFC Defensive Player of the Week
Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner Garners NFC Defensive Player of the Week

Coming off his best game of the 2020 season in a 37-27 win over the 49ers, Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner has been named the NFC's Defensive Player of the Week for Week 8.

Finishing with a game-high 11 tackles, Wagner wreaked havoc as a blitzer for Seattle, rushing the quarterback a season-high 20 times on Sunday. Bowling over blockers and shooting through gaps, he tied a career-high with 2.0 sacks and produced four quarterback hits and three tackles for loss on the afternoon.

With the rest of the defense feeding off Wagner's energy, the Seahawks limited the 49ers to just 117 total yards of offense and seven points through three quarters. Most importantly, they limited San Francisco's typically dominant run game to just 48 yards before halftime, forcing Kyle Shanahan's offense to become one-dimensional as Seattle built a 23-point advantage in the third quarter.

It was an impressive bounce back performance after a frustrated Wagner told reporters there would be "no more talking" about the Seahawks defensive struggles following a 37-34 loss to the Cardinals one week earlier. The captain put the onus on himself to step up his game and the rest of the squad followed suit.

"I feel like as the leader of the defense, you have to address the team, you have to bring the issues to light and get everyone on the same page and talk about discipline and consistency," Wagner said following Sunday's win. "That's kind of what we did. Everybody locked in this week. We had a great practice, a great week and it showed in the game."

Wagner has historically played his best football against the 49ers and interestingly, his only other NFC Defensive Player of the Week award came after playing against them two years ago during a 43-18 rout at CenturyLink Field in Week 13. In that contest, the five-time First-Team All-Pro returned an interception 98 yards for a touchdown and also produced 12 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, and two tackles for loss.

While this is only his second NFC Defensive Player of the Week honor, Wagner did earn NFC Defensive Player of the Month in December during the 2014 season.

For the season, the 30-year old Wagner has produced 72 tackles, 2.0 sacks, seven quarterback hits, and four passes defensed. At his current pace, he would finish with 164 tackles, the second-highest total of his illustrious NFL career.

Published
Corbin K. Smith
CORBIN K. SMITH

Graduating from Manchester College in 2012, Smith began his professional career as a high school Economics teacher in Indianapolis and launched his own NFL website covering the Seahawks as a hobby. After teaching and coaching high school football for five years, he transitioned to a full-time sports reporter in 2017, writing for USA Today's Seahawks Wire while continuing to produce the Legion of 12 podcast. He joined the Arena Group in August 2018 and also currently hosts the daily Locked On Seahawks podcast with Rob Rang and Nick Lee. Away from his coverage of the Seahawks and the NFL, Smith dabbles in standup comedy, is a heavy metal enthusiast and previously performed as lead vocalist for a metal band, and enjoys distance running and weight lifting. A habitual commuter, he resides with his wife Natalia in Colorado and spends extensive time reporting from his second residence in the Pacific Northwest.

Home/Seahawks News