Christian Wilkins defensive tackle Miami Dolphins
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MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - JANUARY 07: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills reacts after being sacked as Christian Wilkins #94 of the Miami Dolphins looks on during the third quarter at Hard Rock Stadium on January 07, 2024 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images)
The Miami Dolphins are in full rebuild mode, having discarded multiple former franchise mainstays over the past month.
Yet, making the news now is one of their former players, Christian Wilkins. Wilkins was at the center of a very strange release-mystery last offseason, when the Las Vegas Raiders cut him and voided his contract guarantees for not rehabbing his injured foot properly.
However, it was subsequently reported that there was more to his release than simply injury, with some outlets asserting that the former Dolphin once playfully kissed a teammate on the head in addition to other locker room incidents.
Writing on X, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that much of his supposed toxicity around teams is very much overblown, and that there remains a substantial demand for his services – when he is fully healthy.
Adam Schefter
Free-agent DT Christian Wilkins fully intends to play this season, but still is rehabbing his foot injury, per his agent David Mulugheta. So far 26 teams have reached out and are waiting for Wilkins to be ready, and Wilkins is expected to have a new home as soon as he wants.
Adam Schefter’s Report Contradict’s Locker Room Narrative
“Free-agent DT Christian Wilkins fully intends to play this season, but still is rehabbing his foot injury, per his agent David Mulugheta. So far 26 teams have reached out and are waiting for Wilkins to be ready, and Wilkins is expected to have a new home as soon as he wants.” Schefter posted on X on Friday.
But this does fly in the face of reports going back just recently. Speaking on Thursday, New York Giants insider and beat reporter Jordan Raanan alluded to the fact that some of the locker room antics may have been not only a reason as to why Wilkins was released, but why he remains a free agent.
“Whatever happened in that locker room, I don’t know exactly what it was, but on top of the injury part, it just sounds like that’s gonna be a tough one for him to overcome. Even if it’s Dexter Lawrence, who is one of his best friends, it doesn’t sound like that’s one where it’s gonna be easy to bring him into your locker room.” Raanan said on the Giants Nation Show.
Do Teams Have Off-the-Field Concerns with Christian Wilkins?
At this point, it is not clear who to believe. There were numerous reports about Wilkins’ locker-room antics that supposedly kept numerous teams away, and for that the proof is in the pudding: Wilkins remains unsigned since being released last July.
However, Schefter is arguably the most trusted journalist in the sport, and despite some believing that this narrative was perhaps one pushed by Wilkins’ agent, there does not seem to be a realistic world in which the ESPN insider would actively lie and compromise his reputation for the sake of an individual player or his representatives.
Perhaps teams were just scared off by his injury, and it seems like for good reason given that he is still not ready to go. But where there is repeated smoke, one would imagine there is at least a little bit of fire.