Teams across the NFL had until Tuesday to decide whether or not to place the franchise tag on key impending free agents. Numerous players were slapped with that designation, including the likes of Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. and Kansas City Chiefs cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, among others.
But one player was curiously not hit with the tag: Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Christian Wilkins. He will now enter free agency, where teams like the Houston Texans and the aforementioned Bengals will surely register interest.
Wilkins has been one of the best interior defensive linemen in the NFL since arriving in Miami. Not only is he a premier run stuffer, but he can get to the quarterback as well. Wilkins ranked 13th in the NFL last season in individual pass rush win rate, according to ESPN's trench win rate metrics. He went on to post nine sacks in 2023. Only the Baltimore Ravens' Justin Madubuike, Kansas City's Chris Jones, Miami teammate Zach Sieler and Buffalo Bills' Ed Oliver had more sacks at that position than Wilkins last season.
Wilkins is poised to be one of the best players to hit free agency in the 2024 offseason, set to secure a hefty bag on the open market. Teams like the Texans and Bengals would be wise to go after him.
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans should be in the driver's seat to land Wilkins for a few reasons. For one, they have a ton of money to spend. Houston currently has $70 million in cap space, which is the fourth-most in the NFL. Only the Washington Commanders, Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots have more.
Also working in the Texans' favor is that they are already ready to compete, as evidenced by their 45-14 drubbing of the Cleveland Browns in the playoffs. CJ Stroud, the 2023 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, proved to be one of the best quarterbacks in football immediately upon entering the league and is still on his rookie-scale contract. That's the cheat code in the NFL these days, and Houston is poised to exploit it over the next three seasons before Stroud earns himself a big extension.
The Texans were very solid against the run in 2023. They ranked sixth in the NFL in EPA allowed per rush and were also second in run-stop win rate. Houston was also tied for 13th in the NFL in sacks registered with the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders.
Houston doesn't necessarily need Wilkins, but it is never a bad idea to continue to invest in the defensive line, especially if it can bolster a team's pass rush. Wilkins can help in both the run and pass game. He'd be a phenomenal acquisition for the Texans in free agency.
Cincinnati Bengals
Houston may not need Wilkins, but the Bengals sure do. Unlike the Texans Cincinnati had problems defending the run all season long in 2023. That issue only got exacerbated when DJ Reader, their starting interior defensive lineman, suffered a torn ACL. As a result, players like Ty Chandler went off against the Bengals (23 carries, 132 yards) on the ground.
Here are all 23 Ty Chandler carries against the Bengals.
The burst is so obvious. He was very creative with his vision at the LB level on a couple of runs. Some great run blocking by the Vikings' OL all game too. pic.twitter.com/jl88yllfUN
— Matt Fries (@FriesFootball) December 19, 2023
Cincinnati ranked 25th in the NFL in EPA allowed per rush. They were also 26th in run-stop win rate. The Bengals were not good defending the run last season, but they have the means to address that weakness. They have $50 million in cap space to spend, the seventh-most in the NFL. Wilkins is the best player at that position. Cincinnati should go all out to get him.
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