Raiders Tackle Christian Wilkins Was a Shocking Cut From the Team's 2025 Roster

Pro football player Christian Wilkins signed a four-year, $110 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders, but the team announced during training camp in 2025 that they had made the decision to cut him. Given the size of that contract and Christian's prominence on the Raiders, many football fans were naturally curious about why he had been cut.

Releasing a player that you have under contract comes with real costs, although in this case, the Raiders have voided the $35.2 million in guaranteed money that he was set to receive. Here's what we know about why they cut him.

According to reporting from CBS, a disagreement over how to handle recovery from a foot injury was ultimately the reason that the Raiders decided to cut Christian. Christian was diagnosed with a Jones fracture in his foot during the 2024 season, and recent updates suggested that his recovery from the injury had been difficult. Because his recovery did not go according to plan, the Raiders reportedly wanted him to undergo surgery that would have reset his recovery timetable.

Christian refused and instead opted to rehab the injury.

"We have decided that it is in the best interests of the organization to move on from Christian Wilkins, and he has been informed of his release from the team," the Raiders said in a statement. "This franchise has a commitment to excellence on and off the field. With no clear path or plan for future return to play from Christian, this transaction is necessary for the entire organization to move forward and prepare for the new season."

Clearly, then, the Raiders did not see a world where Christian could return to the field anytime soon.

"We took a long time to make our decision," Coach Pete Carroll said, per NFL.com. "We watched our way through the whole thing. We're keeping it really clear with what we said. I think there was no clear path to his return, so we just had to move on."

Although the lack of a clear path to recovery has been the stated reason for Christian's departure from the team, reports have begun to circulate suggesting that there was something else at play. ESPN reporter Adam Schefter said that Christian tried to "playfully" kiss another teammate on the head and added that that teammate took offense. The report from ESPN even suggested that the other player filed a formal complaint with the HR department.

The article also states, though, that the kiss was not the sole reason for Christian's release. However, it seems like, between tensions he had with a teammate and his difficult road to recovery, the team felt it had no other choice. Cutting players is always difficult, but it is part of the process of building a roster in the NFL, and occasionally, it means that you have to cut someone who once showed incredible promise in the league.