Christian Wilkins (born December 20, 1995) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

for the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level (NCAA Divis ...

and was selected by the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

in the first round of the

2019 NFL draft The 2019 NFL draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. The first round was held ...

Early life

Wilkins is a native of

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

. He originally attended Framingham High School, before transferring to Suffield Academy in

Suffield, Connecticut Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol Planning Region, and located in the Connecticut River Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

, after his freshman year. In 35 games in high school he had 253 tackles and 28.5 sacks. Wilkins was rated as a five-star recruit and was ranked among the top players in his class. He committed to play

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

College career

As a freshman at Clemson in 2015, Wilkins played in 15 games with one start and had 33 tackles and two sacks. As a sophomore in 2016, he was named an All-American by the

Football Writers Association of America The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...

(FWAA) and was a finalist for the

Bronko Nagurski Trophy The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football defensive player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) to be the best in the National Collegiate Athle ...

. Wilkins was part of the Clemson team that defeated top-ranked

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

in the

2017 College Football Playoff National Championship The 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game that was played on January 9, 2017, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The third College Football Playoff National Championship, the game determine ...

by a score of 35–31. He also was part of Clemson’s 2018 team that defeated Alabama in the National Championship game led by Trevor Lawrence 44-16. In the Florida State game and South Carolina game of 2018, Wilkins scored a touchdown for the Tigers.

College statistics

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Wilkins was selected by the

in the first round (13th overall) of the

. In a Week 7 loss of 21-31 to the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

, Wilkins was ejected after throwing a punch at

Cody Ford Cody Ford (born December 28, 1996) is an American professional football player who is an offensive guard for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners. He has played in the ...

on the second play of the game. In Week 9 against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

, Wilkins recorded his first career sack on

Sam Darnold Sam Richard Darnold (born June 5, 1997) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans football, USC Trojans, winn ...

in the 26–18 win. In Week 16 against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

, Wilkins recorded his first career touchdown reception on a pass from

Ryan Fitzpatrick Ryan Joseph Fitzpatrick (born November 24, 1982) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Fitzpatrick started at quarterback for nine teams, the ...

in the 38–35 overtime victory. In Week 8 of the 2020 season against the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

, Wilkins recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by

Jared Goff Jared Thomas Goff (born October 14, 1994) is an American professional football quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, setting Pac-12 Conference single- ...

during the 28–17 win. Wilkins was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

list by the team on November 12, 2020, and activated on November 25. In Week 15 of 2021 against the Jets, Wilkins lined up at fullback and recorded his second career touchdown on a flea flicker pass from quarterback

Tua Tagovailoa Tuanigamanuolepola Donny Tagovailoa ( ; born March 2, 1998) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide ...

. The Dolphins picked up the fifth-year option on Wilkins' contract on April 28, 2022. Wilkins finished 2023 with a career-high nine sacks, establishing himself as a top tier player at his position.

Las Vegas Raiders

On March 14, 2024, the

signed Wilkins to a four-year deal worth $110 million, with $84.75 million guaranteed. Wilkins produced 17 tackles, 2 sacks and 6 QB hits before suffering a foot injury in Week 5 against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

. He is out indefinitely following surgery to repair a Jones fracture.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Sports Reference (college)
*
Las Vegas Raiders bioClemson Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkins, Christian 1995 births All-American college football players American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Clemson Tigers football players Framingham High School alumni Las Vegas Raiders players Living people Miami Dolphins players Players of American football from Springfield, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Framingham, Massachusetts Suffield Academy alumni William V. Campbell Trophy winners