Patriots’ Matthew Judon reached out to now free-agent LB Bobby Wagner
The Patriots' outside linebacker shot former Seahawks star Bobby Wagner a sly tweet Tuesday night after Seattle released Wagner amid its rebuild.
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With the Seahawks hitting the reset button following their trade of Russell Wilson, teams like the Patriots will be circling the Pacific Northwest for anything that’s not nailed down coming out of Seattle. As of Tuesday night, All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner is now one of the cast-offs.
The Seahawks made Wagner the second big victim of the team’s firesale, releasing him to save $16.6 million in cap space. The 31-year-old star middle linebacker was entering the final season of a three-year, $54 million deal in Seattle.
That frees Wagner up to sign with a contender as he winds down his career, and New England Patriots outside linebacker Matthew Judon already has his recruiting hat on.
“@Bwagz HEY BIG HEAD,” Judon tweeted knowingly in Wagner’s direction late on Tuesday after the news broke.
Wagner, who will turn 32 during training camp this season, has made the Pro Bowl and an All-Pro team in every season since 2014, earning First-Team All-Pro honors in six of the last eight seasons. He has also logged 900 or more defensive snaps in his last seven seasons, a sign of his continued durability as he ages.
Though he wouldn’t necessarily fit the Patriots’ perceived mantra of getting younger and faster at linebacker, he’s too good a player and too well-respected not to inquire about.
Pro Football Focus cap expert Brad Spielberger suggests Wagner could earn about $7-10 million on a one-year contract, which could be manageable depending on how New England shuffled its salary cap. The team already cut Kyle Van Noy to save over $4 million.
Should the Patriots have interest in Wagner (which they should), they’ll have their chance to legally negotiate pricing starting on Monday, which marks the start of the league’s legal tampering period ahead of free agency.
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