Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Christian Wilkins is out indefinitely after undergoing surgery to repair a Jones Fracture and will be placed on injured reserve, according to a team source.
Wilkins sustained the injury in Sunday’s 34-18 loss to the Denver Broncos that dropped the Raiders to 2-3 on the season. A Jones Fracture is a broken bone between the base and middle part of the foot. It is known for its high rate of delayed healing.
The 28-year-old was a big offseason signing for the Raiders, inking a massive four-year, $110 million deal. In five games this year, he has 17 tackles, six quarterback hits and two sacks. Before joining the Raiders, the 2019 first-round pick spent five seasons with the Miami Dolphins. While in Miami, he recorded 355 tackles, 50 quarterback hits, 20.5 sacks and one interception.
The Raiders have seen numerous defensive injuries throughout the first five weeks of the season, alongside wide receiver Davante Adams asking for a trade and a brewing quarterback competition between Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell.
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Who do the Raiders turn to now?
That’s four important defensive starters now out for the Raiders, who already lost pass rusher Malcolm Koonce and safety Marcus Epps for the season while linebacker Divine Deablo has missed three games with an oblique injury. The Raiders gave Wilkins $85 million guaranteed to make up a 1-2 punch up front with Maxx Crosby (who has been limited since suffering a high ankle sprain in Week 2), but now will turn to veterans John Jenkins and Adam Butler to pick up some of the slack.
They also think nose tackle Nesta Jade Silvera and rookie Jonah Laulu, who they claimed off waivers from the Colts in August, have some pass-rush potential. — Vic Tafur, Raiders senior writer
Las Vegas’ D-line struggles
Wilkins got off to a slow start this season, but he was starting to hit his groove just as he got hurt. He was in the midst of his best performance with five tackles, one sack and two tackles for loss when he sustained the Jones Fracture.
The Raiders’ D-line was expected to be the strength of the defense coming into this season, but it’s turned out to be a weakness. Their efforts to stop the run have been futile as they’re allowing 131.8 rushing yards per game (23rd) and 4.9 yards per carry (27th). Additionally, the Raiders have one of the most ineffective pass rushes in the league. They have a pressure rate of just 24.4 percent (31st) and have just 11 sacks (T-20th) despite blitzing at the fifth-highest rate in the league, according to TruMedia.
Those struggles came with Wilkins, and it’s hard to imagine things will get better without him.
Butler will step in for Wilkins and has been a solid rotational interior pass rusher throughout his career, but he’s still a significant downgrade from Wilkins.
There’s been speculation on social media that Wilkins was injured while celebrating his sack against the Broncos with Butler, but that’s not the case. Wilkins suffered his injury early in the second quarter, according to a team source. He attempted to play through it, but ultimately came out of the game toward the end of the period. After evaluation, he was ruled out for the rest of the game at halftime. — Tashan Reed, Raiders beat writer
(Photo: Harry How / Getty Images)
