The Las Vegas Raiders were projected to have one of the best defensive line groups in the league last season, but injuries prevented this from becoming a reality. Star defensive end Maxx Crosby missed five games, and emerging edge rusher Malcolm Koonce missed the entire season with a torn ACL.
Perhaps the biggest loss of the year was Christian Wilkins, whom the team handed a $110 million contract during free agency. He suffered a foot injury in Week 5 and spent the rest of the season on the injured reserve, but all signs indicated that he was going to be ready by Week 1 this year.
This notion was called into question on Wednesday when Sportskeeda's Tony Pauline reported that the Raiders were worried about Wilkins' injury status and that he may need another procedure done on his foot. The Las Vegas Review-Journal's Vincent Bonsignore responded by vehemently refuting this notion.
"Last I heard, he was fully on target with no issues," Bonsignore wrote. "Something would have had to change, significantly, for this to be accurate."
"This is absolutely not something that's coming from the Raiders," he wrote in another post.
Pauline's basic point was that the Raiders should draft Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham to fill the void left by Wilkins if his injury concerns are as bad as he had heard. Graham would be a solid selection for the Silver and Black, but as it stands right now, it would signal nothing about the health of Wilkins.
