The Las Vegas Raiders are doing everything they can to climb their way back to respectability in a brutal AFC West, but the most recent franchise updates have uncovered a major hurdle for their defensive front.
Defensive lineman Christian Wilkins has suffered some complications in his bid to return to the field following a season-ending foot injury in 2024. And that puts his timeline in question for the 2025 season as well.
The Raiders' hopes to get after Patrick Mahomes have taken a significant setback with the latest injury update on Wilkins.
Wilkins broke his foot just five games into his first season with the Raiders, in a game against the Indianapolis Colts. Instead of turning into the complementary pass-rushing asset he was heavily compensated to be, Wilkins became yet another frustration in a basement-dwelling season.
According to Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Vincent Bonsignore, Wilkins' progress has encountered a major setback, which placed him back in a walking boot this offseason. He may have broken his foot again, although the Raiders have made no public updates.
Wilkins was the team's most exciting import in 2024. The disruptive defensive tackle signed a $110 million deal spanning four years to play alongside Maxx Crosby in a remade defensive front. Together with first-round investment Tyree Wilson and Malcolm Koonce, Las Vegas had a solid plan up front. Unfortunately Koonce was also lost for the season and the Raiders went 4-13.
Given the finances involved, the Raiders are obviously still depending heavily on Wilkins to team with Crosby and help turn around the team's fortunes in a grueling AFC West. It's not hard for any division rival of the Kansas City Chiefs to see how effective the Philadelphia Eagles were in getting after Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl LIX. That's going to be the emphasis going forward for teams trying to supplant the Chiefs atop the division.
To their credit, the Raiders are doing their best to move forward in 2025. They've hired a Super Bowl winning coach in Pete Carroll and brought in Geno Smith to provide some consistency in the passing game. They drafted Ashton Jeanty to energize the ground game, and signed Jeremy Chinn among others to bolster the secondary. They also brought back Koonce, who is on track to return in time for Week 1.
But much of what the Raiders want to accomplish begins up front and that remains a significant question mark for now. Christian Wilkins is a major x-factor for Las Vegas in 2025 and the latest reports fail to add much hope to the situation.