Bobby Wagner’s best Seahawks friend: Megabucks deal for All-Pro a ‘no-brainer’ certainty
Earl Thomas did the final year of his contract his way. It was the wrong way—for him staying with the Seahawks, that is.
This time last year into September, Thomas angrily stayed away from the team. The now-gone All-Pro was protesting Seattle not giving him a third contract at the top of the NFL market for safeties.
There’s also the Wright way to handle an expiring Seahawks contract.
While Thomas was holding out last spring and summer, K.J. Wright began the final year of his contract the way he has started all nine of his NFL years with the Seahawks. The veteran linebacker and Pro Bowl selection in 2016 attended every voluntary workout last year. He worked through every practice from April until August without an extension.
While doing so he got hurt. A knee that bothered him in 2017 acted up again in the preseason. Wright had to have surgery. He missed 11 of 16 regular-season games. He thought he, too, was gone.
Yet the Seahawks did for Wright after his knee surgery in 2018 what they did not for Thomas after his broken leg last season. They gave him the third contract, on terms he wanted.
His teammate and close friend Bobby Wagner publicly pointed out multiple times in 2018 that Wright was doing it the right way. The Seahawks decided not to reward Thomas, who signed instead with Baltimore. They paid Wright.
Guess who’s entering the final year of his Seahawks contract now?
Wagner has crafted a third, unique way to handle the last year of his deal while seeking a megabucks extension. He is splitting the difference between Thomas’ and Wright’s approaches. It’s a quasi-protest.
This month, he has been at all of the first five organized team activities practices through Wednesday. He’s participated in the voluntary offseason workouts in the training room that began in April.
“Honoring my contract,” Wagner said last week.
But he is refusing to practice.
He is coaching instead of practicing this offseason.
He doesn’t want to get hurt before he gets his new, top-of-the-market contract for which he is negotiating with the Seahawks, without an agent. All signs are Wagner is going to get his new deal from the Seahawks, perhaps by the start of training camp in late July.
“This is a business,” he said. “You get hurt, they are going to cut you.”
His best friend thinks Wagner’s is the correct way—the way that’s going to get the three-time All-Pro the richest contract for an inside linebacker in the NFL (above $17 million per year) very soon.
“Bobby knows what he’s doing,” Wright said Wednesday. “It’s going to be really exciting to see everything pan out.
“He’s going to be a Seahawk for life. He’ll get a helluva a deal done. So I’m excited to see how it all turns out.”
What makes Wright so “100 percent” sure of that, as he also said Wednesday?
“The Seahawks know that defense wins football games,” he said. “If you want to have a chance and continue to be successful, making the playoffs, you have to have the best linebacker in the game signed.
“So it’s a no-brainer to me. Healthy. Ballin’. All the signs say, get it done.”
Wright says he doesn’t believe anyone in the Seahawks’ locker room is questioning what Wagner is doing: being present but remaining off the field until he gets that new contract.
“I think everyone understands. I believe everyone knows that he’s definitely a team guy,” Wright said. “At the same time, there is a business side to it.”
Just then, Wagner poked his head out of the back door of the team headquarters, toward wear Wright was speaking to the media outside following Wednesday’s OTAs.
“Gatorades, K.J.,” Wagner said to his buddy.
“Speak of the devil,” Wright said, on cue, chuckling.
“Players support players. We get it. It’s a short career that we have, so you have to maximize it the best you can.
“I love it,” Wright said of Wagner being here, but not practicing. “I think it’s smart. There’s no right or wrong way to do it.
“I participated and did everything, got hurt, contract year. Earl didn’t show up, got hurt, contract year.
“So there’s no right or wrong way to do it. I think he’s got to find that balance where he’s here, mentoring the guys, still doing warmups and group install (of the playbook).
“So, I’m feelin’ it.”
This story was originally published May 30, 2019 at 7:22 AM.
