Seahawks Bobby Wagner already planning for life after football

SEATTLE — Though he’s only heading into his seventh season in the NFL, Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner is already planning for life after football. The business side of the NFL — which Wagner acknowledges is cutthroat at times — can nonetheless open plenty of doors for players willing to learn.

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​He joined KIRO Nights' Gee Scott and Zak Burns.

"The NFL can be a really big help outside of football. If you do it right while you're in the league, you can have a really successful life," Wagner said. "I think sometimes players don't take advantage of some of the things the NFL offers until they know they're about to hang it up."

"But you never know when you're about to hang it up," he said. "You're always one hit away from having to call it quits."

Drafted from Utah State in 2012, Bobby Wagner is a 4-time Pro Bowl player who's recorded more than 750 tackles and 15 sacks. The Seahawks signed Wagner to a four-year, $43 million contract extension in 2015. But he doesn't rest in the off-season. Wagner spends much of his time investing in the future.
"The season goes from August to February if you're lucky," Wagner said. "From mid-February to July, you have a lot of time to learn, a lot of time to connect, a lot of time to read, and figure out life."
For Wagner, spending a few hours after workouts testing the waters can reap benefits for years to come.

"I like to try to go and visit business places to learn how they started their businesses, and learn how they got going," Wagner said. "I'm also looking into going back to school."

"You can have this amazing, successful career, and be a hall of famer. And that's dope," he said. "But the average player retires at 35. So there's still more that you could be doing with your life. This could only be a chapter, and you could still go on to do amazing things."

Hear the full interview with Bobby Wagner here.