Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner has been one of the best players in team history. In 10 seasons, Wagner is an eight-time Pro Bowler, a six-time All-Pro and a Super Bowl champion.
It seems only right that Wagner retires with the Seahawks without playing for another team. But that’s not how the NFL works these days.
Wagner’s $20.35 million cap hit for 2022 combined with a potential rebuild in Seattle has Wagner’s future in doubt.
That means Sunday could be Wagner’s final home game at Lumen Field.
“You think about it,” Wagner said Wednesday, via Brady Henderson of ESPN. “You think about what the next year looks like and what the future holds because this was a season that I don’t think we all planned for. We didn’t plan for the season to go this way, so obviously there’s going to be some changes and whether or not I’m part of those changes, I don’t know.”
The Seahawks could save $16.6 million against their 2022 salary cap by cutting Wagner, who serves as his own agent, and he would count only $3.75 million in dead money.
Wagner, 31, is as productive as ever. Although tackles are not an official NFL statistic, Wagner leads with 170. That betters the franchise record he set in 2016.
He is not considering retirement.
“I feel like I’ve got a lot of room to grow as a player, to grow as a leader,” Wagner said. “I feel like there’s a lot of new technology that’s going to let me play a little bit longer, so I’m excited to dive into [that] stuff, and I think we’ll see how it works out.”