Pros and Cons of Lions Signing Released Raiders Defender

Typically, the timeline for a Jones fracture to heal takes under six months, and Wilkins was placed on the Physically Unable to Perform list at the start of the Raiders’ training camp. His injury occurred in October 2024. 

That said, Wilkins was named a top 10 defensive interior lineman ahead of the 2025 season, and for good reason. His PFF run-defense grade has been above 78.0 in three of the last four seasons, and his 0.68 PFF WAR (a 'wins above replacement' metric) is 11th best among interior defenders, despite Wilkins only seeing the field for 246 snaps last season. 

At 29 years old (30 in December), Wilkins has plenty of time to recover and regain his rhythm. As a player that recorded 9 sacks in 2023, his last full season, he can record a major impact on the game, and that would only be compounded with Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport working on the EDGEs alongside D.J. Reader and first round pick Tyleik Williams in the middle with Wilkins. 

Even during his five-game stint in 2024, Wilkins was productive, with 2 sacks and 6 QB Hits. He has plenty left in the tank. A long rehab for a Jones injury, however, will scare teams off. 

Signing Wilkins, however, will come with a cost. A one-year prove-it deal would be ideal for the Lions, but it is unknown what Wilkins will be looking for in the open market. If he demands a long-term deal, that will make things significantly harder for the Lions. 

Alex Anzalone, Sam LaPorta, Brian Branch, and Jameson Williams are just a few of the Lions looking for extensions, with the last three all looking for longer term ones for their second pro contract. None of those four names will come cheap, either.

OverTheCap lists Detroit with just over $48 million in cap space, which would make signing Wilkins to a single year deal highly doable. Paying Wilkins around what his Raiders deal was scheduled to award him ($22.5 million average value), is doable, or even sweetening it to ensure the linemen ends up in the Honolulu Blue. 

That hypothetical deal would give Wilkins a chance to prove his health is back to what it was, along with putting him with the most talented defensive line he would work with in his now-seven-year career.

For the Lions, they would add another run stopper with extreme pass-rush upside and create a defensive line that would give any offensive coordinator nightmares.

Ultimately, the reason for the split calls into question whether he'd fit with Detroit, but there's no question his talent would help a defensive interior that has been decimated by injury.