When the Las Vegas Raiders signed Christian Wilkins in 2024, they thought they weren't getting a game wrecker that would turn their defensive front into one of the best in the conference. Unfortunately, an injury that forced him to miss time last year could put his availability for next season in question. The Silver & Black will need to prepare for the worst-case scenario, and giving the Jacksonville Jaguars a call to inquire about one of their defensive tackles could help.
Wilkins suffered a foot fracture in Week 5 that cut his 2024 campaign short. Expected to bounce back, his recovery has taken longer than expected. Heading into the summer break, he was seen wearing a walking boot during a golf event. This isn't great news for the Raiders. Even if the former Clemson Tiger comes back at some point in 2025, he may not be at full strength. Heck, it wouldn't be shocking if they're already bracing themselves for the possibility that he won't return until next year.
Not surprisingly, Las Vegas has been urged to trade for defensive tackle help. Levi Dombro of Just Blog Baby suggests general manager John Spyteck give the Cleveland Browns a call and inquire about Shelby Harris. Keep in mind that this isn't a report but rather a pitch. With that in mind, the Jags could also be a viable trade partner.
Jaguars DT DaVon Hamilton could a solid plug-in replacement for Christian Wilkins
It won't be easy to replace Wilkins. One year before joining the Raiders, he posted a career-best 10 sacks with the Miami Dolphins. That said, the Las Vegas Raiders don't have anyone right now who can fill his shoes. Sure, Adam Butler is a stud, but he was already set to start next to him. Enter DaVon Hamilton.
A third-round pick in 2020, Hamilton joined the starting lineup as a rookie and made enough progress the following two years that the team's brass gave him an extension just before the 2023 draft. However, the Ohio State product suffered a non-football back injury that year that forced him to miss plenty of time. And when he returned, he wasn't at full strength. Things didn't get much better for him last year.
Ham posted 62 total tackles, including five for a loss, in 17 games with 14 starts but didn't log a single sack. With Arik Armstead switching back to defensive tackle and Maason Smith expected to make a leap in Year 2, he could become expendable.
The Jaguars signed the promising Eli Mostaert as an undrafted free agent, and Tyler Lacy could earn a bigger role in the rotation. On top of that, defensive ends Dawuane Smoot and Travon Walker could get a few snaps inside to turbocharge the defensive front. This is a long-winded way to say that Jacksonville could afford to trade Hamilton to the Raiders or any other team that inquired about his availability.
Hamilton is set to have a cap hit of $10.8 million. Trading him would free up $7.3 million in space and leave dead money hits of $3.5 million and $8.5 million in dead money hits in 2025 and 2026, respectively. Couple that with the fact that general manager James Gladstone hasn't been afraid to cut ties with players he inherited from the previous regime, and it's easy to see the Jags shipping the sixth-year defensive tackle to another team. In fact, a fresh start could do him well.
This begs the question, what could the Jags get in exchange for DaVon Hamilton? Probably a sixth or seventh-round pick. Now, nothing indicates right now that they will move him at any point in 2025, but based on the moves Gladsone made in the offseason, it shouldn't be ruled out either.