Bobby Wagner is reuniting with the Seattle Seahawks after a one-year hiatus from the franchise where he began building his Hall of Fame resume.
The eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker, who played last season for the Los Angeles Rams, signed with Seattle on Saturday, bringing an end to the courtship of one of the top free-agent defenders on the NFL market this offseason.
Wagner, a former Utah State star, signed a reported one-year, $7 million contract with the Seahawks, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
“Maaaaan! Glad to be back in Seattle! It means a lot to be able to come back! Let’s get to work,” Wagner said on Instagram.
The 32-year-old Wagner was a franchise staple for Seattle for a decade, after being drafted by the Seahawks in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft.
During his first stint with the team, he amassed nearly 1,400 tackles and 23.5 sacks over 10 seasons, won a Super Bowl title his second year in the league, twice was the NFL’s single-season tackles leader and was a six-time first-team All-Pro, while twice earning second-team All-Pro honors.
Last year, the Seahawks released Wagner, and he signed a five-year, $50 million contract with the NFC West rival Rams.
Related
In his lone season in Los Angeles, Wagner had 140 tackles, a single-season career-best six sacks, 10 tackles for loss and a pair of interceptions, all while earning his third career second-team All-Pro citation.
The Rams released Wagner on March 15, though, as both sides agreed to mutually part ways, according to Schefter.
That put Wagner back on the market, and now he’s back with the team where he developed into one of the game’s premier middle linebackers.
On Thursday, Seahawks general manager John Schneider told Seattle Sports 710 AM that the organization had ongoing conversations with Wagner about a potential reunion.
“We’ve been talking to Bobby, and what I can tell you is we’ll see what shakes out, see how this goes,” Schneider said, per ESPN. “Everybody knows how much respect we have for Bobby … He had a great season this last year. We’ll continue to speak with him and stay in touch and see how this goes.”