The Raiders have parted ways with Christian Wilkins, but it’s going to be a long time before the story is put to rest.
The more details that come out about Wilkins tenure with the Raiders, the more it sounds like the superstar defensive tackle was dealing with some serious issues toward the end of his tenure with the team.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter went on the Pat McAfee Show this week and described an incident where Wilkins “playfully” kissed a teammate on the forehead, but insiders and media personalities all over have questioned the accuracy of Schefter’s report – at least in terms of sharing the full story.
NBC Sports analyst Mike Florio believes Wilkins’ agent got a favor from Schefter, who did his professional best to downplay whatever happened between Wilkins and a teammate.
“The reality here is Christian Wilkins has representation that is charged with finding him a job, so what do you do? You work the angles. You work your sources,” Florio said this week on PFT Live.
“Let’s call it what it is. David Mulugheta represents Christian Wilkins. He’s working [Adam Schefter] to get Schefter to put a story out there that is favorable to Christian Wilkins. Let’s just put a favorable story out there so someone will pay him a lot of money. That’s how it works.”
“Why does the reporter do it?” Florio added. “Because it pays off on the back end. For example, when Micah Parsons signs his contract, Schefter may be the first one to report it now because it’s the same agent representing both guys. That’s the transactional nature of the insider game.”
It has been reported that Adam Butler is the teammate that took Wilkins’ alleged actions to the Raiders’ human resources department, but no one has been willing to speak on the full nature of what happened.
For the most part, beat writers and league insiders have been treading lightly on the Wilkins story, but a handful of podcasters and YouTube hosts have covered the story incredibly well – and in some cases they been more informative than their mainstream media counterparts.
Raiders podcast host Graphk Raider talked this week about what he has heard on the Wilkins story, and he said the details floating around behind closed doors are far worse than what Schefter casually referenced on The Pat McAfee Show.
“Adam Schefter and Pat McAfee were saying that it was a kiss on the forehead and, once again, I’m hearing totally different things behind the scenes that it’s even worse than that,” Graphk said on his OVL Raiders Network podcast.
“I’ve heard from multiple people now. After the show yesterday… one of my guys out there that was on the ground told me about it. I’ve heard from two or three separate people now that it’s way more deep than a kiss on the forehead.”
x: @raidersbeat
Who cares? Seriously, it’s now obvious who funds this column—gambling interests as every fourth or fifth one is about how to bet from your pricey seat. I want to hear about what’s going on at training camp, how Geno is faring, how Jeanty is doing, how our two tight end sets are coalescing. I could care less about what Wilkins did or didn’t do, what Davante thinks in hindsight, how Jimmy G was really great (except he couldn’t throw downfield, let’s not forget that). Please write about something real. I have been a Raiders fan for decades, and I want to go into this season with hope, not a bunch of useless gossip.
If you want hope and to see the positive aspects of the team and the organization, go to Raiders.com and listen to the Raiders flagship radio station. And before you get all “they are all homers with rose colored glasses,” ask yourself if you would tell a potential employer about your recent traffic violations in an interview.
I only read this site for an occasional nugget or validation of what others reported. Go Raiders!
If you want hope and to see the positive aspects of the team and the organization, go to Raiders.com and listen to the Raiders flagship radio station. And before you get all “they are all homers with rose colored glasses,” ask yourself if you would tell a potential employer about your recent traffic violations in an interview.
I only read this site for an occasional nugget or validation of what others reported. Go Raiders!