Flores Happy With Wilkins — On Defense

Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Christian Wilkins has dreams of catching passes, but his head coach likes him just where he is

Christian Wilkins' interceptions against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday wasn't the first time the defensive tackle had caught a ball for the Miami Dolphins.

As a rookie in 2019, he scored a touchdown when he caught a short pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick after lining up as a fullback against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16.

Wilkins half-jokingly said after the Rams game that he was hoping to catch more passes moving forward, a thought that put a smile on head coach Brian Flores' face Wednesday when he talked about the Dolphins' 2019 first-round pick.

“Well that’s going to be a hard no," Flores said. "A hard no on the pass-catching opportunities. Hard no. We’ve got other guys we would like to rather see with the ball than Christian."

That out of the way, Flores acknowledged the athleticism that Wilkins possesses for someone his size.

That athleticism first gained national attention when Wilkins did a full-on split to celebrate one of the two national championships he won during his time at Clemson, and then earlier this year Wilkins celebrated a big play by the Dolphins defense by leapfrogging rookie safety Brandon Jones while Jones was on his feet.

"Yes, he’s got some athleticism as a defensive tackle, and we try to use him in a variety of ways — stunts, games in the pass rush — but he does a good job really in all areas," Flores said. "He’s somebody who’s improved I would say from Year 1 to Year 2. It’s important to him and he’s got leadership and energy, and he does a lot of good things and he brings a lot to our team. He’s been fun to coach, but I don’t really see a pass-catching future for him.”

The interception against the Rams wasn't the first time Wilkins had made a splash play this season.

Among other things, he had a monstrous first half in the opener against the New England Patriots, he had a fumble recovery against the 49ers in Week 5, and he had a sack and two passes batted down against the Jets in Week 6.

But the interception might have been the highlight so far.

It came when Wilkins simply dropped back instead of rushing Jared Goff and put himself in the passing lane. The pick set up the Dolphins' first touchdown in their 28-17 victory.

“You know, well, it was a ... let me take you out to the play," Wilkins said. "Let me take you to the mind of a defensive back. They called me to drop, it’s all in the hips. I just really had to open my hips and break on the ball. You know what I’m saying? I saw the line of the quarterback. I saw where he wanted to go, so I just had to break, follow his eyes. I was able to break and make a nice play for the team. Just happy to make plays that can help us win.”

Wilkins' postgame Zoom session then turned to his desire to play more snaps on offense and get his hands on the ball that way, something he was talking about even as a rookie.

“I’ve been saying it for a couple years now that I could play a legit receiver in this league or be a legit offensive weapon," Wilkins said, "and hopefully coaches and everybody else will start taking me a little more seriously about that because ultimately, like I said, I just like to help the team.”