The 49ers got rid of Russell Wilson. They couldn’t get rid of Bobby Wagner.
After spending the first 10 years of his future Hall of Fame career with the Seattle Seahawks, Wagner was cut by the team this offseason, saying that he found out via social media.
Wagner has spent the last several weeks working through potential suitors, with the Baltimore Ravens reportedly in close contention. But in the end, Wagner remained in the NFC West, signing with the Los Angeles Rams, with Richard Sherman the first one to report the news.
Per multiple reports, it’s a five-year, $50 million deal that could be worth up to $65 million with incentives.
The Rams lost Von Miller to the Bills, Andrew Whitworth to retirement, and traded away Robert Woods, but have long needed to improve at linebacker, with Troy Reeder their most commonly used starter there.
Reeder, despite having an excellent NFC Championship game against the 49ers, has been pretty woeful. He finished last season with 46.7 grade from Pro Football Focus, which ranks 73rd out of 87 qualified linebackers, or 15th-worst. Wagner, even at age 31, had a 71.8 grade, which was 15th-best, along with 170 tackles, the third-most in the league.
This is a clear, substantial upgrade for the Rams, even with Wagner entering his 11th season.