Seahawks Offseason Profile: Bobby Wagner

Following another All-Pro performance in 2018, the Seahawks handed linebacker Bobby Wagner a record-setting contract for his efforts as one of the NFL's premier defenders.

Despite entering his age-29 season, Wagner remained a vital part of Seattle’s defense and remained indispensable for coach Ken Norton Jr.'s unit. Overall, the eighth-year pro played 99 percent of the team's defensive snaps and he was utilized on 18 percent of the snaps on special teams as well.

Let’s revisit some of the good and the bad from Wagner’s eighth NFL season, along with a prediction of how next season may play out for him as he enters the first year of his three-year, $54 million extension.

What Went Right

After Wagner received a contract extension last summer, he didn’t waste any time proving he deserves to be the highest-paid linebacker in the league.

During this past season, the Utah State product played in all 16 regular season games and produced a league-best 159 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, six pass deflections, 3.0 sacks, one interception, and one forced fumble, according to Pro-Football-Reference.com.

With Seattle's front four struggling to create pressure, Wagner was provided with 23 more opportunities to blitz the quarterback in 2019. Taking advantage of these opportunities, he was able to provide a spark to Seattle’s stagnant pass rush.

In total, Wagner rushed the quarterback 67 times and produced eight hurries, eight quarterback hits, and 12 pressures along with a 17.9 percent pressure rate (tied for sixth-best among all linebackers with at least 60 rushing attempts), according to Sports-Info-Solutions.com.

During Seattle’s two playoff matchups, the veteran linebacker played every defensive snap and recorded 12 total tackles, 10 solo tackles, one tackle for loss and one pass deflection.

What Went Wrong

Despite earning his sixth trip to the Pro Bowl and his fifth All-Pro nomination, Wagner struggled mightily in coverage throughout the 2019 campaign.

Among all linebackers who were targeted at least 25 times, Wagner allowed the most yards after catch (428), the second-most receiving yards (657), and the 15th-highest completion percentage (80.6 percent).

In addition, the 29-year old linebacker also surrendered a pair of touchdowns, 11.3 yards per catch and a 108.2 passer rating last season. While some of these troubling metrics were caused by his increased snap count as well as schematic issues, it’ll certainly be something that’s monitored next season.

Since Wagner played 1,054 defensive snaps this past season, his highest snap count since 2016, it’s possible that fatigue may have impacted his performance.

As a result, Wagner uncharacteristically missed 10 tackles in 2019. While this total isn’t alarming, he generated just a single missed tackle in 2018 and this was his highest total since 2016.

If you’re into nitpicking, then you could suggest that Wagner should’ve been a more efficient as a blitzer this past season. Despite his impressive sack total and pressure rate, the former Aggie produced fewer hits, hurries and knockdowns compared to his 2018 performance.

2020 Outlook

Heading into next season, the Seahawks are hopeful Wagner will still be capable of producing at an elite level as he’s set to enter his age-30 campaign in 2020.

In comparison to Wagner’s first eight seasons in the league, there’s only been one other linebacker to produce at least 1,075 total tackles, 645 solo tackles, 19 sacks and 10 interceptions through their first eight seasons in the NFL.

Through his first eight seasons in the league, former Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis generated 1,099 total tackles, 868 solo tackles, 56 tackles for loss, 41 pass deflections, 21 sacks and 20 interceptions.

During his ninth season, the Hall of Famer recorded 147 total tackles, 101 solo tackles, six tackles for loss, six pass deflections, one sack and one forced fumble through 15 regular season games.

That's a very small sample size, but there's little reason to believe Wagner can't keep pace with Lewis. If he's able to stay healthy and improve upon his coverage numbers next season, then he could earn his fifth straight First-Team All-Pro selection and further solidify his case for Canton.