Christian Wilkins Believes He’s Earned A Big Payday
Miami Dolphins star defensive tackle Christian Wilkins is confident that his status as one of the league’s premier interior defensive linemen puts him next in line for a contract extension.
Wilkins led all defensive linemen in solo tackles last season with 59, per StatMuse. He also recorded an impressive 98 total tackles, 16 tackles for loss, seven QB hits and 3.5 sacks. Additionally, he forced two fumbles and deflected six passes. He also made his debut on the NFL Top 100 list, landing in the No. 81 spot.
Normally a goofy and fun player, Wilkins is very serious about becoming a top-paid lineman in the league.
“I definitely feel like I’ve done enough and done a lot to earn a new deal and a new contract,” Wilkins said Saturday, per the team’s media transcript. “But again, I’m just focusing on ball and improving every day and just giving my all to this organization and hopefully they’ll give their all back to me. The biggest thing with that, all that stuff, I just try to focus as much on ball as possible and leave all that other stuff up to the organization and my representation and just control what I can control with my guys and with this team.”
Grossly undercompensated
The 27-year-old is criminally underpaid as the Dolphins’ best defensive player. He’s currently the 59th highest-paid interior lineman per yearly salary in the NFL, per Over the Cap. This offseason, lucrative extensions were granted to Quinnen Williams (New York Jets), Jeffery Simmons (Tennessee Titans), and Daron Payne (Washington Commanders)–the collective average annual value for their contracts stands at $23.3 million. Wilkins will make $10,753,000 on his fifth-year option in 2023.
The 2019 first-round pick declined to answer questions about whether there have been encouraging signs in negotiations. However, he expressed how happy he is to see how the other tackles have raised the market for the position.
“I just love it for the evolution of the game and how far we’ve come as a position,” he said. “I’m big on respecting the game so it’s my job to carry that torch for those Warren Sapp‘s, those Vince Wilfork‘s — all those guys that I grew up watching and learning from. I have a responsibility so I love what we’ve been able to do as a position for the game and hopefully we’ll continue to do that.”
In 64 games with the Dolphins, Wilkins has amassed 290 tackles, 33 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, 27 QB hits, three forced fumbles, 17 passes defended and an interception.
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