Christian Wilkins – August 5, 2020
Download PDF version
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
Christian Wilkins
(You led all rookie defensive linemen in tackles last year. When ending the season, what did you and Defensive Line Coach Marion Hobby identify as one or two areas where you felt like you needed to be better this year, and how tough is it to have tackles for loss as a defensive tackle in this system?) – “Well, I’m never a complete player, I’m never done working on my game, so there are always things you can improve on. The biggest thing for me is just working on hands, pad leverage and having good technique, really. That starts with your hands, eyes and feet, and like I said, playing with good pad leverage. From what I’ve noticed from college to the NFL, it’s a lot harder to make those big plays; but that just stems from your technique. If you play with good technique, you’ll make a lot of plays and you’ll make those big plays and get those tackles for loss too. That’s really my big focus going into the season.”
(It’s Year 2. The expectations of being a first-round pick that still don’t escape you. What’s your approach heading into this season as part of – a big part of the Dolphins rebuilding. And what’s your advice for guys like QB Tua Tagovailoa, Noah Igbinoghene and T Austin Jackson as they approach their rookie seasons?) – “No one has higher expectations for me than me. I’m always working daily, day in and day out, on my craft, just to be the best player I can be and the best leader. I felt like I can definitely take a step from a leadership standpoint this year. Just lead by example, vocal when I can. So that’s big as well. It all starts from preparation and doing what I need to do on the field. I’m ready to help those guys out – those three first-round picks – as much as I can because I know what it’s like. I know what the pressure is like, the expectation to succeed on the field and just everything off the field – dealing with life, managing all of the distractions and things like that. I’m definitely here for those guys as much as I can be.”
(I wanted to talk to you about when the Dolphins drafted you, both Head Coach Brian Flores and General Manager Chris Grier referred to all of the energy you bring to all of the practices and workouts. With all of the new faces you guys have on defense this year, I’m curious to know how those personalities are meshing and if anyone is matching your level of energy this year?) – “Well, I don’t think anyone can match my energy. (laughter) I’m always happy, always ready to work, always ready to go. It’s crazy. I feel like the connection we’ve already built and are going to continue to build is just so natural. Those new guys that came in – from the rookies to the free agents, to the guys we picked up, and the guys that have been here – I feel like it’s so natural. It feels like we’ve already been around each other for a while. That stems from good leadership on the defensive side, too. We’ve got good guys. We are bringing those guys in with open arms and everybody else is getting in where they fit in too. That part of it has been great, really connecting with a lot of the newer guys.”
(You guys did a lot of work on the defensive line, or the organization did, in terms of adding pieces, edge setters. How much do you think that that’s going to help benefit your game and DT Davon Godchaux’s game?) – “I think it’ll go hand-in-hand. They’ll help us a lot and we’ll help them a lot. We’ve just got to be on the same accord, have the same mindset and the biggest thing is just do your job. I think we brought in some good guys, like you said, so we’ll help them make plays, they’ll help us make plays. I’m excited to get to work with those guys even just after a few days getting out there, walking through, jogging through and just being with those guys in meetings and stuff and hanging around them. I think we’ve got a chance to be pretty good, but we’ll just take it one day at a time.”
(I’m just wondering with kind of the uncertainty in football and the sports world in general, how does the vibe or the energy feel a little bit different now that you guys have been on the field there for a while, if it feels different at all, or do you kind of still feel that same excitement of training camp?) – “It is different because right now, if this was a typical year and a normal training camp, we would’ve already been in pads right now. We would’ve already hit the ground running, already had about a week or so of practice; so it’s a little different, it’s a little funky. But you still want to bring it. You still have that same excitement, that willingness to work, that willingness to just get better each and every day. You can see that kind of energy – that kind of mindset – around the guys in the locker room, but it definitely is different. You’ve got to be more cautious and take the precautions and follow the new protocols. It’s kind of a new normal of what it’s like just around the facility and everything, but we’re all adjusting pretty well.”
(I wanted to ask you about – I’m sorry if you’ve been already – but have you been asked about WR Allen Hurns’ decision to opt out and had you given any thought yourself to maybe taking the year off?) – “As far as Allen’s decision, I’m behind him and support him 100 percent. In this kind of situation where there are so many unknowns and this is clearly a worldwide pandemic, to each his own. You’ve just got to respect guys and their decisions. I’m not going to knock a guy if he decides to opt out. I’m not going to knock a guy if he wants to keep playing. Guys got their own personal things going on in their life, so they’ve got to deal with it the best they feel. So that’s really how I feel about that, and if guys want to opt out, I respect it and if not, I respect it as well.”
(As the NFLPA player rep, how have your conversations been from a PA standpoint on how things are now that you’re in the building, in camp working out, versus in the offseason when you weren’t together still kind of ironing out details before reporting?) – “Guys obviously have a lot of questions and concerns and just kind of want updates on different things, so being the rep, I’m happy I’m able to provide guys with answers as best as I can in those situations and try to give them as much advice or as much knowledge about certain things that I have, that can help them with making decisions about just going about their everyday life or whatever. I’m happy I’m able to provide that for those guys; but yeah, it’s been a busy offseason, clearly. I put a lot of work in from the rep standpoint – just being on all of the calls and things like that and just taking a lot of time to learn and listen so I can help guys in my locker room.”
(I was wondering if you watched tape of yourself from your rookie NFL season sort of as a teaching tool this offseason and a ballpark idea of how much you were doubled last year in games? About what percent ballpark-wise?) – “I can’t give you a percentage, per se; but I definitely watched a good amount of tape on my game last year and just try to be able to critique yourself and find areas to improve and just areas to get better. There’s a lot of those for me, so now going into this year, I know where to put most of my focus and my time and my energy.”
(Just sort of following up on the NFLPA question, putting your union rep hat on again, how would you categorize the discussions with the other 31 teams? Across the league, would you say that the union reps are optimistic, concerned, pessimistic? Where do you think the collective vibe is?) – “First, I feel like we’ve really got great leadership across the league. I feel like as a union and as the PA (NFLPA), we’ve got great representation. You can clearly see why guys were chosen by their teams to be the representation – just great leadership from all the guys. Really the biggest thing is I feel like a lot of guys are optimistic hoping that we can get through the full season and everything, especially if – the biggest thing is just we as players and we as the NFL and as an organization, we’ve got to take ownership and everyone doing their part so that way we can stay as healthy as possible. We can limit the spread or whatever as much as possible so that we can get through a full, healthy season, so that’s really just where the optimism comes from. You’re just hoping that guys are dealing with it right and everyone is being professional about this.”
