Although defensive lineman Christian Wilkins was just one season into a four-year, $110MM contract, the Raiders released him last July. They designated Wilkins a terminated vested veteran, voiding $35.2MM in guaranteed money, after he declined their request to undergo a follow-up procedure on his foot. Wilkins first had foot surgery in October 2024, keeping him out of 12 games that year, and suffered another injury to his foot during the rehab process.
The 30-year-old Wilkins has not signed anywhere since the Raiders released him, and though he is still rehabbing his foot, he intends to play in 2026, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. There is widespread interest in Wilkins, per Schefter, who reports 26 of the league’s 32 teams have reached out to his camp. Wilkins should not have difficulty finding his next team when he is ready to sign.
After an excellent run at Clemson, Wilkins entered the NFL as the 19th overall pick of the Dolphins in 2019. The 6-foot-4, 310-pounder started 77 of 81 games over five years with the Dolphins. The run-stuffing Wilkins was especially effective during his last three seasons in Miami, where he combined for 252 tackles and 17 sacks. He also played in all 51 of the Dolphins’ regular-season games in that span, but his career went off the rails during his only year with the Raiders.
With 17 tackles, six QB hits and two sacks in five games, Williams remained productive in Las Vegas. However, along with his foot troubles, Wilkins was the subject of an HR complaint after he kissed a teammate on the head. That played into the Raiders’ decision to release Wilkins. The NFLPA filed a grievance on Wilkins’ behalf to recoup the guaranteed money the Raiders voided, but a ruling has not come down yet.