The NFL revealed the players named to the NFC and AFC Pro Bowl squads earlier this week and there was a notable name left off from the Los Angeles Rams. While Bobby Wagner was unquestionably deserving of being selected, Raheem Morris wasn’t shocked to see him snubbed.
“I can’t say it’s surprising when you’re not relevant as we have been and you’re not able to win some of the games that you need to win, some people like the Bobby Wagner’s, they get snubbed,” Morris said. “It’s a shame because he’s had a great year, he’s been outstanding, and that all gets lost when you’re not able to win enough games. Those are things that happen even when you’re Bobby Wagner. So I don’t think it’s a knock on him. I don’t think it’s a knock on what he’s able to do and what he’s been able to do this year from a standpoint of bringing something to us, bringing us juice, bringing us energy, bringing us consistent play that he’s been able to bring us, and bringing us Pro Bowl-like talent, and bringing that elite player that he’s been able to be throughout his career and I love it. I’m sad that he got snubbed from it, but at the same time, I love the man that I’ve been able to coach this year and the guy that’s been able to come to play with us every single game.”
Morris points to the struggles of the Rams this season as the reason why Wagner wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl. The reigning Super Bowl champions are 4-10 entering Week 16 despite the veteran inside linebacker still playing at an All-Pro level.
It also doesn’t help that only two inside linebackers are selected to the Pro Bowl for each conference, with Fred Warner and Demario Davis representing the NFC. That being said, Wagner does have 20 more tackles and three more sacks than Warner while having 29 more tackles and only 1.5 fewer sacks than Davis.
Amid a woeful season for the Rams, Wagner has been a stalwart in the middle of the defense, logging 100-plus tackles for the 11th straight year to begin his remarkable career. Even though he was seemingly an easy choice to make the Pro Bowl, Morris doesn’t want Wagner being snubbed to overshadow just how special the six-time All-Pro has been this season.