The player that should be the Vikings’ top target is about to hit free agency

We’re just over a week away from the start of free agency, and a player whose talent exactly matches one of the Minnesota Vikings’ most pressing requirements is about to enter the market unrestricted.
According to our pals at The Phinsider, the Miami Dolphins will not place the franchise tag on defensive tackle Christian Wilkins before tomorrow’s 3:00 PM Central deadline, leaving him an unrestricted free agent.

Wilkins was the Dolphins’ first-round pick (#13 overall) in the 2019 NFL Draft, coming from Clemson. He played his first five NFL seasons with the Dolphins and has shown to be one of the league’s best interior lineman, especially when it comes to getting after the opposing quarterback. Wilkins started all 17 games for the Dolphins this season, and he hasn’t missed one since 2020. He recorded 65 total tackles and nine quarterback sacks.

Despite their defensive improvement from 2022 to 2023 under Brian Flores, the Vikings were still pretty bad at producing an interior pass rush. Flores coached Wilkins while he was the Dolphins’ head coach from 2019 to 2021, therefore he is familiar with his ability. If the Vikings chose to pursue him, he would significantly improve Minnesota’s pass rush.