The Raiders made it a point this offseason to improve their interior defensive line. They wanted to get bigger and stronger in the middle and they certainly accomplished that.
In a recent article by ESPN, they named the one position that each team improved the most this offseason. For the Raiders, that was none other than defensive tackle. Here is what Paul Gutierrez had to say about their improvement this offseason:
Signing an elite free agent in Christian Wilkins, who brings 20.5 career sacks with him to Las Vegas, does more than improve the position from a pass-rush perspective — it makes the Raiders’ defense potentially a top-10 unit.
Wilkins, who had a career-high 9.0 sacks for the Dolphins last season, had more sacks in 2023 than fellow Raiders DTs John Jenkins (3.5), Matthew Butler (0.5), Byron Young (0) and Nesta Jade Silvera (0) have combined in their careers.
The addition of Wilkins gives the Raiders a bonafide stud at the defensive tackle position and should help alleviate some of the stress put on Maxx Crosby. If Malcolm Koonce and Tyree Wilson can continue to ascend, the Raiders have a chance to have one of the better defensive lines in all of football.
