From Then, To Now: The Undeniable Progress Of Las Vegas Raiders EDGE Tyree Wilson

Raider Nation has waited for Tyree Wilson to do damage on the field since the Las Vegas Raiders selected him seventh-overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. The wait is over.

Wilson’s selection was met with mixed reviews from fans on draft day. With a remarkable 86-inch wingspan, in addition to the 17.0 sacks he compiled in college, it was made abundantly clear that the Texas Tech alum had all the tools to be successful at the next level. However, those who were familiar with Wilson knew it wouldn’t happen overnight: In addition to being a notably-raw talent, the 24-year-old was recovering from a foot fracture he had suffered in 2022.

For fans who had sat through the Alex Leatherwood experiment, the Raiders’ most recent first-round pick prior to Wilson, the idea of adding a “project” as opposed to an immediate contributor didn’t sit right. Add in the fact Las Vegas had two proven edge rushers in Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones, and it’s understandable why some of Raider Nation wasn’t the biggest fan of the Wilson selection.

Wilson didn’t give those fans a reason to be optimistic during his rookie season, either.

The then-rookie ended his ’23 campaign with 3.0 sacks and 24 pressures, both of which ranked fifth-highest on the team. Beating blockers proved to be hard for Wilson, whose 6.4% win-rate ranked third-lowest on the entire team. Even worse was his run-defense, which was given a lowly grade of 47.6 via Pro Football Focus.

To make matters worse, Malcolm Koonce, Las Vegas’ third-round pick in 2021, had begun doing what fans had hoped Wilson would. With 54 pressures and eight sacks, Koonce finished second to only Crosby in both areas last season.

But all of that is ancient history now.

Tyree Wilson: From then, to now

It would be nice to say Wilson’s sophomore season started in promising fashion, but that simply wouldn’t be true. After playing six snaps in Week 1’s contest against the Los Angeles Chargers, Wilson watched the remainder of the game from the sidelines. He’d go on to miss Week 2’s matchup as well.

Wilson was back in action for Week 3, just in time for the infamous “business decisions” game. And, although the Raiders lost 36-22 to the then-winless Carolina Panthers, Las Vegas’ second-year pass-rusher was a bright spot.

Stopping the run seemed to come easy for Wilson, who recorded three run-stops – two more than any other player on Sin City’s roster – en route to a 75.4 grade against the run; the fifth-highest mark among all EDGE league-wide. In addition to missing zero tackles throughout the contest, Wilson also managed to record a quarterback hit, showing his improvements as a pass-rusher.

The build-in-a-lab edge rusher would continue showing his improved abilities to get to quarterbacks, too. From Weeks 3-7, Wilson was able to generate nine pressures. He added four quarterback hits to his resume as well. Beating blockers proved to be much easier for the 24-year-old, who posted a win-rate of 12.5% that was comparable to Crosby’s mark of 13.4%.

Still, the sacks weren’t coming.

Week 8, onward: Something is different with the Las Vegas Raiders’ second-year pass rusher

Heading into Week 8, Wilson had neither a sack nor a tackle for loss on the year. Although he was generating pressures in bunches and hitting quarterbacks, Raider Nation desired more from their team’s seventh-overall pick one season ago.

Their wish was granted.

Against the Kansas City Chiefs, Wilson put together a notable performance which included his first sack of the season. Additionally, the 6-foot-6 EDGE made his presence known in the run-game, adding a tackle behind the line of scrimmage to his ’24 campaign.  Only K’Lavon Chaisson beat blockers at a better rate than Wilson, who won his matchup 12.5% of the time.

This performance wasn’t a one-off, either. In fact, since Week 8, Wilson has finished a game with at least one sack and tackle for loss in three-of-four contests. By all accounts, Tyree Wilson has completely turned the page during his last four outings.

Wilson’s three sacks in the meantime is equal to the amount each and every other Raiders defender has combined for. Not only does his eight pressures rank second on the team From Week 8 onward, but his 73.4 grade against the run stands as the 19th-highest across the NFL at his position.

The Alaska native is contributing off of the stat-sheet, too.

Against the Broncos in Week 12, Wilson forced Bo Nix to throw away a ball on third-down on a play where only he was able to force pressure. Although there isn’t a spot for that type of play in the stat-sheet, these stand as potential game-changing plays that Wilson deserves his flowers for.

The bottom line

The future is starting to look quite bright for Tyree Wilson, who many fans had begun writing off after a subpar rookie season. However, his foot injury side, Wilson was always a player who needed time to work on his technical skills.

Eventually, Wilson will need to start accumulating multiple sacks in a single contest before he can be considered a star. Still, it’s important to stop and let his progress since entering the National Football League sink in.

Fans wanted pressures, and sure enough the pressures came. Fans then wanted Wilson to improve his edge-presence, and sure enough, he did just that. Then, it was time to produce sacks; with a sack in three of his last four outings, Wilson has taken that step as well.

It’s still an ongoing process, and Wilson isn’t where he’d like to be yet, but it’s a night-and-day difference from his rookie campaign to now. Raider Nation should feel good about their second-year edge rusher given that fact.