As the NFL’s defending Super Bowl champions heading into the 2022 season, the Los Angeles Rams had sky-high expectations that they could not meet. Whether because of injuries, a lack of execution, or tough breaks, the Rams have found themselves just a game ahead of the last-place spot in the NFC West with two weeks remaining in the season.
All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner signed with Los Angeles in the offseason in the hopes of chasing a ring with the Rams this year, and has gotten a raw deal in that regard given how the season has played out. Nonetheless, head coach Sean McVay told reporters on Sunday that Wagner’s steady presence has been a boon for him personally amid Los Angeles’ 2022 skid. When asked if the linebacker has made an impact on his outlook for the future, he answered in the affirmative.
“I have,” McVay explained, “because this has been anything but ideal and really, it’s the first time when you look at it in this role where there’s been failure and in a lot of instances or we’re not getting the results that we want and that weighs on me a lot because you want it to be like what today is for these players, for these coaches and you want to be able to do the things that you can impact within the framework of your role and it takes everybody, but that’s where just seeing the way he’s handled it has been helpful for me in what has been a really challenging, difficult year.”
Few teams have ever repeated as Super Bowl champions in back-to-back seasons, and the Rams would have been hard-pressed to capture lightning in a bottle two years in a row. If it weren’t for Matthew Stafford’s season-ending injury back in Week 13, the team might have had a shot at the playoffs, but even then, they have seemed a shell of their former selves for most of the year.
Wagner has proven to be a leader for the team both on and off the field and to hear McVay tell it, his veteran presence has helped buoy the Rams through some supremely challenging situations.
