Did Sean McVay's Chance Encounter with Bobby Wagner Lead to Signing?

This isn't the first time an offseason unexpected meeting led to an addition to the Rams' roster

Last offseason, Sean McVay was vacationing in Cabo and inadvertently ran into Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was also vacationing. Not long after, the Rams orchestrated a trade with the Lions to bring Stafford to Los Angeles. 

Bobby Wagner and Sean McVay

Bobby Wagner

Bobby Wagner

That move is widely credited as being a key cog in the Rams' machine that won the Super Bowl in February.

This offseason, McVay was dining at Wally's in Beverly Hills when he bumped into free agent linebacker Bobby Wagner. That was prior to Wagner signing a five-year, $50 million contract worth up to $65 million through incentives with the Rams.

“What’s funny, though, is I did actually run into Bobby Wagner prior to him leaving the Seahawks at Wally’s in Beverly Hills,” McVay said on The Rich Eisen Show. “I was with Raheem Morris and Chris Shula and we ran into him and DK Metcalf and I said, ‘Hey, maybe this means something.’ And what do you know? Now he’s a Ram. Not tampering, though. I was not tampering. I just said ‘hello, how you doing?’”

Sean McVay and Bobby Wagner

Bobby Wagner

Bobby Wagner

McVay made it known quickly that there was no tampering involved.

The Rams continue to re-tool their roster - specifically the defense - after the departure of linebacker Von Miller in free agency. Wagner is expected to fill in where Miller left off, wreaking havoc on opposing offenses. 

“To be able to add him, especially with a lot of the great leaders that we lost from last year’s team, I don’t think you can say enough about the influence, the impact that he’s gonna have,” McVay said. “Love the guy. He’s got a great look in his eye every day coming into the meetings and he’s gonna be a big part of what we do defensively next year, without a doubt.”

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You can follow Timm Hamm on Twitter at @IndyCarTim

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