Bobby Wagner: 'I'm Preparing Like This Is My Last Year As A Seahawk'

Bobby Wagner has developed into one of the best all-around linebackers in football. He’s a top defensive player in the league, and Seattle’s defense depends on him to succeed. He’s second only to Russell Wilson in importance for the Seahawks.

Wagner’s contract is up after this year, and Wagner told NFL Network’s Oman Ruiz contract negotiations with the team hadn’t started yet, and he’s “preparing like this is my last year as a Seahawk.”

“I’m preparing like this is my last year as a Seahawk. If it is, I want to make sure I go out with a bang and make sure I give the city something to remember,” #Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner told me during a charity event at his high school alma mater in Ontario, CA.
— Omar Ruiz (@OmarDRuiz) May 4, 2019

Wagner is irreplaceable, and it seems likely the Seahawks wouldn’t want to lose him under any circumstances. But they’ve balked at paying out big contracts for defensive players in the past, as recently as this past season with Earl Thomas. If he were to leave, he would be the one of the best defensive player to hit the free agent market in recent memory.

Still, Seattle might be willing to pony up for a player of Wagner’s caliber at a relatively thin position. He had 138 tackles last season and had a legitimate argument for Defensive Player of the Year. The Seahawks would have to have a lot of faith in their depth pieces to let Wagner go next season.