What's Next for Christian Wilkins?

Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins has a big personality but his on-field performance has made him impossible not to notice on the field as well

Christian Wilkins always seems to find a way to stick out during Miami Dolphins practice.

The young defensive tackle is flashing on the field this summer and inciting chants from the crowd when he’s off it.

Wilkins looks primed to break out in 2022 and build off a career-best 2021 season. He finished with career highs in tackles (89), sacks (4.5), tackles for loss (10) and quarterback hits (13) last season.

However, Wilkins is still looking to evolve his game past his strong run defense and become a more productive pass rusher. He hopes to do that by sticking to his role in Miami’s scheme.

“Just really playing within the scheme and then making plays when they come to me,” Wilkins said. “I’m always trying to be a dominant player on the field, but also do it within the scheme and do it within the realm of things."

BIG EXPECTATIONS FOR WILKINS

Among those who have been impressed with Wilkins is a new teammate, veteran tackle Terron Armstead.

“Man, real active group,” Armstead said when asked about the Dolphins defensive line. “Real active group. Highly talented. A lot of skill. Adding Melvin Ingram to that group is, I think, extremely underrated. He’s an amazing player and has been that way for a long time. A guy like Christian Wilkins who has been highly productive but hasn’t been that notable as far as popularity ... I’m projecting that he has a standout year, more so in the stat line than ever before. (He’s an) extremely talented player, intelligent player, real good hands and feet technique."

Wilkins' 89 tackles in 2021 tied him for the league lead at defensive tackle, but he's always looking for more.

In order to take those next developmental steps, Wilkins is going out of his way to correct mistakes during training camp.

Wilkins sometimes will stay after practice to work with fellow defensive tackle Zach Sieler. When the two notice a mistake in practice, they make sure to correct it before leaving.

“Zach has been so big for me in my career,” Wilkins said. “That’s my guy. That’s my best friend on the team. He’s a smart player. We see things really similarly. Kind of things he may miss, I can pick up for him and vice-versa. He’s been great for my development as a player and we bounce things off of each other and talk about schemes. We are at that point where we know if we mess up, we’re like ‘Ok, this is what happened.’ It’s not as much of we’re coming over and like, ‘What was this? What was that?’ We can correct ourselves and we take a lot of pride in that.”

DIFFERENT APPROACH FOR WILKINS

Wilkins’ on-field play has improved every season, but he’s noticed that his mind-set has too. He’s expecting that to shine through when the Dolphins participate in joint practices with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this week.

Wilkins is excited about the opportunity to work against a team with some talented offensive linemen.

“That’s going to be a lot of fun,” Wilkins said. “Obviously, you know what kind of team Tampa has been in the past and the type of players they have. It’s going to be fun. I’m looking forward to it definitely. Being at this point in my career, four years in, I have a little bit of a different mind-set when I go into the joint practices. As a young guy, you’re still like trying to figure it out.

Wilkins’ skill set took some time to translate to the NFL, but his personality translated right away.

WILKINS A FAN FAVORITE

Anyone who watches Dolphins football knows about Wilkins’ love for celebrating touchdowns whether he’s on the field or not. When he gets a sack he strikes the pose made famous by the TV show "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers."

Wilkins is an animated presence, to say the least.

This and his dance moves — he’s well known for doing “the worm” — have clearly earned him a lot of brownie points with the Dolphins fan base. He also likes playing to the crowd as he did when they were chanting his name at practice Saturday.

“It’s all love,” Wilkins said about the chanting. “I appreciate the love and support from the fans and everything, and I have a good time with it. It’s all love. I enjoy it all.”

Wilkins understands he and the defense still have improvements to make, but if his performance during training camp and the word of his teammates are any indication, he’ll get to strike his Power Ranger pose a lot more this season.

“It’s really a day-by-day thing,” Wilkins said. “You’re never like a fully finished product. You’ve always got to bring it every day and that’s kind of our mindset. The leaders lead and everyone else follows. We just have to bring it. There are always wrinkles and things we might adjust or whatever. Really, it starts with the leaders and just bringing it and having that mindset that you’re never really complete as a defense. You’re always looking to improve.”