By: Khari Demos

On arguably the toughest day in franchise history, the Seattle Seahawks parted ways with first Russell Wilson, then Bobby Wagner, on March 8. Those two moves marked the end of an era, as they were the last two Seahawks from the team’s Super Bowl XLVIII victory to close the 2013 NFL season.

The Wilson trade almost seemed inevitable ”” just a year after Russ’s camp released a list of teams he’d prefer to be sent to if he were to be traded. The move with Wagner came out of the left field. I mean even for Wagner, the move even caught him by surprise.

How could Seattle let that happen? The franchise’s all-time leading tackler, a team co-captain, and one of the cornerstones for a team that played in back-to-back Super Bowls. The Seahawks should have done better. So now a soon-to-be 32-year-old Wagner will hit free agency for the first time and he’ll have a huge chip on his shoulder. Coming off a second-team All-Pro selection (his eighth consecutive All-Pro nod) and his eighth straight Pro Bowl campaign in 2021, Wagner compiled a career-high 170 tackles last season.

There’s no question Wagner has built up a case for the Hall of Fame already in his 10 NFL seasons. But how does he rank all-time amongst the game’s best middle linebackers?

According to Pro Football Reference’s Pro Football ILB Hall of Fame Monitor, Wagner is currently 10th on the list with a career score of 101.33, as the average HOF score is said to be 109. The top 10 on that list are also the only MLBs in NFL history that have compiled a score of 100 or more. There are only four players above him on the list that have not made the HOF yet, but they all figure to do so ”” Zach Thomas, Brian Urlacher, Luke Kuechly, and Patrick Willis.

Also of note, Wagner is one of only five players within that top 10 that has won a Super Bowl.

Despite only playing 10 seasons thus far, Wagner’s six first-team All-Pro selections (he also has two second-team selections) are tied with Pittsburgh’s Jack Lambert for second-most all-time for an MLB, trailing only Ray Lewis and Mike Singletary who each have seven, respectively. His eight Pro Bowl selections are tied for the fourth-highest MLB total of all-time, as he’s matched Urlacher, Dick Butkus, Nick Buoniconti, and Willie Lanier.

Two of the coolest stat rankings, in my opinion, for Wagner are his combined tackles and QB hits. Coming in at third all-time with 78 QB hits, the Utah State product only needs 20 more to surpass Ahmad Brooks for the most ever for an MLB since it became a stat in 2006. As for the combined tackles, he’s already ninth all-time with 1,383, as he’s one of three players to rank inside the top 10 that has played no more than 10 seasons, joining Kyle Clifton and Chris Spielman.

Moving up on the all-time tackles list should not be a problem for Wagner. Averaging 138.3 tackles per season, if Wagner were to hit that average mark next season he’d place himself sixth all-time ahead of Clifton and right behind Hardy Nickerson (1,586). And if he keeps on this pace, Wagner should be a top-five tackler of all-time before the end of the 2023 season.

Now let’s get into some comparisons. As an NFL 2010s All-Decade performer, let’s start with the team’s other MLBs, Luke Kuechly and Patrick Willis. One thing to keep in mind with both Kuechly and Willis is that their careers were cut short ”” both players only stuck out in the league for eight seasons.

Let’s start with Kuechly vs. Wagner. The former Carolina Panther superstar did win the 2012 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award over Wagner, but he also has a nod over Wagner by claiming the 2013 Defensive Player of the Year, an honor Wagner has yet to achieve. Wagner does, however, have more All-Pro nods (8 total vs. 7 total).

With Wagner having outplayed Kuechly for 33 more games, it’s hard to evaluate some raw totals. Wagner wins the combine tackles (1,383 vs. 1,092), sacks (23.5 vs. 12.5), defensive touchdowns (3 vs. 1), and in QB hits (78 vs. 31). But Kuechly was much more of a ballhawk, surpassing Wagner in picks (18 vs. 11), pass deflections (66 vs. 60), as well as in tackles for loss (75 vs. 68). Both players tied with nine career fumble recoveries and they both led the NFL in tackles twice each.

Now looking at the Willis vs. Wagner debate, the former played in even fewer games than Kuechly (112 total, 39 fewer than Wagner). Wagner’s eight All-Pro nods outpaced Willis’ six total (5 first-team, 1 second-team), and his eight Pro Bowls were one more than Willis’ seven, but it’s almost unfair to pit the two against each in raw totals. Wagner’s career numbers are higher than Willis in the categories of combined tackles, INTs, pass deflections, sacks, TFLs, QB hits, and defensive TDs. But amazingly, Willis does have the advantage in forced fumbles, edging Wagner by a margin of 16-6.

Willis also matched Wagner by leading the league in tackles on two separate occasions.

Now another MLB I believe Wagner stacks up to comparatively is a fellow All-Decade performer, and that’s 2000s selection, Zach Thomas. Most known for his tenure with the Miami Dolphins, Thomas also led the league in tackles twice (2002, 2006). Wagner’s eight All-Pros are just one more than Thomas’ seven (5 first-team, 2 second-team). Wagner also has the edge in Pro Bowls over Thomas, coming in at an 8-7 margin.

Thomas has played a few more games than Wagner (184 vs. 151), and the latter had that advantage in the other comparisons. Thomas has a clear lead in tackles with his 1,734 combined total (fourth-most ever), but he also takes it with INTs (17 vs. 11), forced fumbles (16 vs. 6) and tackles for loss (74 vs. 68) even though that did not become a stat until Thomas’ fourth year in the league. Wagner has outperformed Thomas in some areas though too, including in sacks (23.5 vs. 20.5), fumble recoveries (9 vs. 8), and pass deflections (60 vs. 48), although it must be noted that PDs were not a stat until Thomas’ fourth year as well.

Another name that I want to compare Wagner to is Thomas’ fellow 2000s All-Decade MLB, Brian Urlacher. In a dominant career with the Chicago Bears, the former New Mexico Lobo tied Wagner with eight Pro Bowl selections and was named the 2005 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Urlacher does hold the DPOY over Wagner, but his five All-Pro nods (4 first-team, 1 second-team) just fall short of the former ‘Hawk’s total.

This may be the most back-and-forth debate of them all. Wagner outpaced Urlacher in terms of seasons leading the league in tackles (2 vs. 1) and has more career tackles (1,383 vs. 1,361), despite playing in 31 fewer games. But Urlacher has the advantage in INTs (22 vs. 11), fumble recoveries (16 vs. 9), forced fumbles (11 vs. 6) pass deflections (90 vs. 60), defensive TDs (4 vs. 3), and TFLs (138 vs. 68).

All of these figures are great, but one that was not mentioned was playoff statistics. All the players mentioned above were tremendous, but they may not stack up to Wagner here. The former Seahawk has 153 combined tackles in the postseason, the second-most in NFL history only behind Lewis (218).

Overall historically, Wagner would need two more first-team All-Pro selections to tie Bruce Smith, Lawrence Taylor, Joe Schmidt, and Bill George for the most ever for a player that plays defense primarily (8). In terms of active players, only the great Aaron Donald (7) has more first-team nods than Wagner.

So it’s safe to say Wagner should end up with a gold jacket once he hangs up the helmet. But the question now will be what team will he be adding to his HOF resume with next season?

The post Is Bobby Wagner a future Hall of Famer? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

Luke Kuechly and Patrick Willis were two of the most accomplished and dominant linebackers of their era. Deciphering which linebacker was more dominant requires a deeper look into their careers from the moment they were drafted, until they retired. They have interchangeable careers that spanned eight years, and netted a multitude of awards, and a lasting impact on the NFL.

They both were a Defensive Rookie of the Year, 7x Pro Bowler, 5x First-Team All-Pro, 2x NFL tackles leader, 2x All-American, Butkus Award winner in college and the NFL and a member of the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.

Their accolades speak for themselves, and their career statistics align with one another. Dominance goes beyond the stat sheet, though. How peers viewed them when lining up against them, and how teammates felt about them is a major part of dominance. I will look at each player individually and the impact they had in the NFL before deciding on a verdict.

Luke Kuechly

Kuechly was the quintessential iron-man, missing only ten games throughout his eight-year career. He excelled when dropping into coverage, and could smother opposing tight ends and running backs. Although, he was a force to be reckoned with rushing the passer and stopping the run, pass coverage was his strong suit.

His instincts and athletic ability separated him from other linebackers in the NFL, as the prime example of what up-and-coming linebackers should strive to be. This propelled him to earn the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award in just his second season in the NFL.

He totaled 18 interceptions and 67 pass deflections, and put fear into the opposing quarterback when throwing in his direction. Kuechly was the leader of the Carolina Panthers for almost a decade and his departure left their defense is disarray.

Patrick Willis

Willis was one of the most ferocious hitters that the NFL has ever seen. He was the unquestionable leader of the most prolific defense in the NFL with the 49ers. He was a terror when rushing the passer and meeting opposing running backs up the gut.

His quickness and sideline-to-sideline ability made him great in pass coverage as well, but rushing the passer and stopping the run were his strengths. He recorded an astonishing 174 tackles his rookie season, and put opposing teams on notice from the beginning.

He amassed 20.5 sacks and forced 16 fumbles throughout his career, and was arguably the best linebacker in the NFL from his rookie season on. Willis dealt with injuries in the latter part of his career, which forced him to retire, but he was still imposing his will on opposing offenses until the day he retired.

Which LB Was More Dominant?

Each linebacker should be in the Hall of Fame when it is all said and done, and they have each left their mark on the NFL. They played different styles while playing the same position, and it is truly splitting hairs when deciding on which was more dominant.

While Willis was an all-time great, Kuechly was the more dominant linebacker. His unique ability and intellect were unmatched during his time in the league, and while he did battle some injuries during his career, he went out on top and on his own terms.

He played in all 16 games his last season and recorded over 140 total tackles that year. That is pure dominance from start to finish, and he walked away as one of the best linebackers to ever walk the earth. With over 1,000 tackles in his career and his pass coverage abilities, we may never see another linebacker with the sheer talent and mental awareness that Kuechly had.

The post Was Luke Kuechly or Patrick Willis the more dominant lb? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.