5. Bobby Wagner
Team: Seattle Seahawks
Position: MLB
Experience: 7 Years
The SneakerReporter’s highest rated inside linebacker and the best in the business, Bobby Wagner. Wagner came into the league in 2012 and his career took off as the Legion of Boom dominated the NFL, leading the Hawks to the 2014 Super Bowl Title. Although most of the recognition went elsewhere, Wagner patrolled the middle of the field, while also shutting down runs with ease. Without him, the Legion of Boom looks a lot different and may never win a championship.
When the Seahawks drafted Wagner in the 2nd round of the 2012 NFL Draft, the scouting report on him was that he plays with a terrific motor but could be undersized at the NFL level. The scouts weren’t wrong about the motor at all, as Wagner has an uncanny sense of reading plays and blowing up running backs in the backfield. In his rookie season he had over 130 combined tackles, three INTs, and 9 tackles for loss. Wagner quickly put the concerns about his size to rest.
The Seahawks Super Bowl run in 2014 really catapulted Wagner into the elite category, finally receiving some well earned recognition. He made his first Pro-Bowl and First Team All-Pro in 2014. Since then, he has yet to miss a Pro-Bowl and has earned First Team All-Pro honors three more times (2016, 2017, 2018). Wagner’s versatility is what makes him so special. He is quick enough to stay with receivers over the middle but also strong enough to shed linemen on the interior.
Bobby Wagner has all the ideal qualities for an inside linebacker. At 6’0” 240 lbs., Wagner is an absolute wrecking ball. His explosion and hit power are some of the best in the NFL today. But perhaps Wagner’s best trait of all, he never misses tackles. Wagner and Kuechly are known as some of the best form tacklers in the league, but Wagner took it to a whole new level in 2018 when he only missed one tackle the entire season. Wagner already owns real estate in the Seahawks Record book as the All Time leader in Solo Tackles, as well as the most tackles in a single season, with 168 in 2016.
Wagner holds his spot as one of the last members of the Super Bowl winning squad in 2014. Wagner has been healthy for the majority of his career, hopefully foreshadowing many more years of dominance. At only 29 years old, expect Wagner to keep producing elite numbers. Bobby Wagner is truly an underappreciated star in today’s league. He isn’t about the fame and antics, he strictly gets the job done.
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