The Seattle Seahawks have locked down their defensive leader just in time for the season.
The Seahawks signed linebacker Bobby Wagner to a three-year, $54 million extension with $40.2 million in guarantees, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per sources informed. The team later made the news official.
"I'm really excited to have this done, excited that I get to be a Seahawk for a long, long time," Wagner said in a statement released by the team. "Like I've always said, I want to play my entire career here, and feel like today is a step toward that."
The 29-year-old becomes the highest paid inside linebacker at $18 million per year. in the NFL, surpassing the $17 million-per-year average C.J. Mosley earned from the New York Jets.
"He deserves to be the highest-paid linebacker. Ain't nobody better than him in the game and that's just the honest truth," quarterback Russell Wilson told reporters after practice Friday.
Wagner this week, despite not having a new deal, but did not participate in practice.
Former teammate Earl Thomas suffered a fractured leg last season in the final year of his contract in Seattle after not getting a new deal so it's no surprise that Wagner was cautious with his body this off season.
Wagner finished last season with 138 tackles, six tackles for loss and one interception.
