Before joining the Los Angeles Rams, Bobby Wagner played for the Seattle Seahawks for ten years. His time with the Rams was cut down quite a bit.
Adam Schefter of ESPN says that Wagner and the Rams have chosen to part ways. Wagner signed a five-year, $50 million deal to join the Rams last year.
When a team and a person part ways after one season, it’s usually a sign that the season was forgettable, but Wagner gave the Rams exactly what they wanted, despite their terrible 5-12 record.
The All-Pro second team Wagner, who is 32 years old, played in all 17 games and ended with 140 total stops (141 if you count his fight with a protester), 10 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 5 passes stopped, and 2 interceptions. For the eighth year in a row, he was named to an All-Pro team. Pro Football Focus said that he was the best safety in the NFL for the season.
Wagner’s play wasn’t so much the problem as how his contract fit into the Rams’ bigger plans.
Given how they’ve spent the last few years, it’s not strange that the Rams let Wagner go to get some much-needed cap space. Over The cap says that as of Thursday, the Rams were $14.9 million over the wage cap for the 2023 season.
Bobby Wagner contract says that he will get a base pay of $7.5 million in 2023, plus $4 million in incentives and $1 million from his prorated signing bonus. This adds up to $12.5 million, which is less than his price cap. By letting him go, the Rams will have $5 million more to spend on salaries. However, they will still have to pay $7.5 million in dead money.
But that won’t be enough to get the Rams under the line, so there should be more changes. Since the team has been struggling lately and at least one All-Pro player is being let go, it makes sense that Wagner would want to win another title somewhere else.
At first, the best defenders who were free agents were Lavonte David, Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards, and Tremaine Edmunds. The addition of Wagner is expected to shake up that group.
