The Raiders continue to struggle at giving Maxx Crosby a reliable supporting cast. Christian Wilkins has followed Chandler Jones as a free agency miss, one that came as the team’s top-10 Tyree Wilson investment has yet to produce much of consequence. Wilkins is out despite having been attached to the second-most lucrative defensive tackle deal.
As a fight between the surprising castoff and the Raiders brews, the team did not view the high-priced D-lineman’s recovery path as being set to yield a near-future return. As a result, Las Vegas cut bait and will move into training camp without much invested at defensive tackle.
“We watched our way through the whole thing,” Pete Carroll said Friday, via the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore. “There was no clear path to his return. And so we just had to move on.”
The Raiders had given Wilkins a monster guarantee ($57MM at signing) despite the former first-round pick not delivering much in the way of pass-rushing production outside of an impressive 2023 contract year. Wilkins, though, had displayed dominance as a run defender in Miami and was PFR’s No. 4-ranked free agent last year.
The Dolphins had hesitated on a monster extension due to limited pass-rushing production from 2019-22; a nine-sack 2023 changed the team’s thinking but cap issues prevented a true effort to compete in that market last March. Wilkins is now in free agency again and fighting for the guaranteed money he received upon signing.
To land the biggest fish in last year’s pass-rushing market, the Raiders authorized three fully guaranteed years. That is a rare structure, but it showed the demand Wilkins created after escaping the franchise tag deadline untethered. With Chris Jones being taken off the market two days before the 2024 legal tampering period, Wilkins benefited as the top DT prize. The Raiders did not, seeing Wilkins go down five games into the season. The Wilkins signing affected the Raiders’ decision to fire GM Tom Telesco after one year.
If the Raiders cannot succeed in voiding Wilkins’ remaining guarantees, they would be on the hook for a staggering $74.95MM in dead money (split between 2025 and ’26) stemming from guarantees and deferred signing bonus money. That would trail only Russell Wilson‘s Broncos penalty in NFL history. The Raiders informed Wilkins of their attempt to void the remaining guarantees last month, per Bonsignore, though CBS Sports’ Joel Corry views Wilkins’ guarantees as difficult to void based on what is known about this situation. The team is attempting to use a disagreement on a surgical path as a springboard to voiding them.
On the field, the Raiders’ D-line looks less imposing — even if Wilkins was unlikely to start the season on time. The team does not appear to be aggressively pursuing outside help at D-tackle, with Carroll indicating a “wide open” internal competition would take place. Leki Fotu, Jonah Laulu and 2025 draftees Tonka Hemingway and JJ Pegues are competing to join the recently re-signed Adam Butler as prominent Raiders contributors inside following Wilkins’ release.
Finding a one-for-one replacement on Wilkins’ level is impossible at this juncture, but some notable free agents remain. Ex-Wilkins Dolphins teammate Raekwon Davis is among them, joining Linval Joseph, William Gholston, Quinton Jefferson, Montravius Adams and ex-Raider Maurice Hurst Jr.. Jefferson, who played with the Raiders in 2021 and enjoyed two stints under Carroll in Seattle (2016-19, 2022), also worked out for the team before the Wilkins release, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes.
The team also claimed DT Keondre Coburn off waivers from the Titans, Wilson adds. Not bringing experience that rivals Jefferson’s nine-season run, Coburn played in 15 Tennessee games — as a backup behind a strong D-line trio — last season. He is tied to a one-year, $1.03MM contract. The Chiefs drafted the 332-pound defender in the 2023 sixth round.
Jefferson, now 32, remains in free agency. A 62-game starter, Jefferson split time with the Browns and Bills last season. Seventeen of Jefferson’s starts came with the Raiders, while he added 27 more under Carroll as a Seahawk. Seattle released Jefferson during Carroll’s final offseason in charge.