Christian

Wilkins

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport adds that Wilkins will be placed on injured reserve. He exited the Raiders’ Week 5 game against the Broncos early and now undergoes surgery to repair a Jones fracture. Wilkins has tallied 17 tackles and two sacks this season after signing with the Raiders in the offseason. Adam Butler and John Jenkins will fill the void while Wilkins remains out.

Wilkins notched a sack before exiting, bringing his season-long tally up to two. The three-down defensive tackle entered Week 5 with eight quarterback pressures and eight run-defense tackles, both figures ranking third among Raiders defenders. His loss is significant.

Tyree Wilson’s status remains up in the air but Maxx Crosby is good to go as well. Wilkins, signed to a four-year, $110 million contract in the offseason, is still looking for his first sack as a Raider. He will look for it against Andy Dalton, who is making his first start of the season, this week.

Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins is also questionable. Wilson injured his knee after 11 snaps in Week 1. He was upgraded to a full participant on Friday, giving him a good shot of suiting up. Regardless of his status, the Raiders are expected to have Maxx Crosby, a one-man wrecking crew on the defensive line, available for this game. He should have no issues causing trouble for Andy Dalton in his first start of the year.

The market’s top defensive lineman is set to join the Raiders and team up with Maxx Crosby to form what should be an elite defensive front. Crosby and Wilkins, who totaled 65 tackles and a career-high nine sacks last season, will now look to lead a defensive unit that they hope can offer some resistance to Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert, who they will be forced to face four times a year. Wilkins’ deal includes $84.75 million in guaranteed money, as he now becomes one of the highest-paid defensive tackles in the league.

The Dolphins chose not to place the franchise tag on Wilkins, allowing him to hit the open market this offseason. Wilkins is coming off a breakout campaign that saw him log nine sacks and 10 TFLs. Pro Football Focus charted him with the ninth-most pressure for a defensive lineman. He also forced a fumble and scooped up two more. As Russini noted, there will be a robust market for one of the best interior pass-rushers in the league.

It was reported on Sunday that the Dolphins were unlikely to tag Wilkins, but that became official on Monday, according to Rapoport. Wilkins will be one of the top free agents on the market and is fresh off a season in which he totaled 65 tackles and a career-high nine sacks. Wilkins will be 28 at the start of next season and can immediately bolster any defensive line in need of help.

Wilkins is among the league’s top defensive tackles and is fresh off a 65 tackle season that also included a career-high nine sacks. According to Fowler, the Dolphins and Wilkins are “keeping options open,” but the expectation is that Wilkins will test free agency. The Dolphins are struggling with cap space as they currently sit at roughly $28.4 million over the cap, per Spotrac.com. Should he officially hit the open market, Wilkins will draw plenty of interest from teams heading into his sixth season.

He said on ESPN NFL Live, “If that means franchising him, that’s likely what they’ll do.” As Graziano noted, Miami needs to clear over $50 million in cap space this offseason. Tagging Wilkins would add roughly $21 million to their books for the upcoming season. That makes keeping Wilkins in town tricky, but far from impossible. A long-term deal could keep his cap hit for 2024 in check while still getting him plenty of money in the coming years. Wilkins totaled nine sacks and 10 TFLs in 2023.

The kids are now referring to this as a “hold in.” Like most players in his situation, Wilkins doesn’t have much leverage at the negotiation table as holding out would not allow him to hit free agency next offseason. However, it sounds like the two sides could still come to an agreement. McDaniel said that he and the Dolphins organization also feel Wilkins deserves a new deal.