The Tennessee Titans general manager, Jon Robinson, had a bad offseason. He added players to the team such as Vic Beasley, Johnathan Joseph, Jadeveon Clowney, Wilson, Kristian Fulton and Darryton Evans. All of who failed to pan out. Robinson drafted Isaiah Wilson out of Georgia with his only first-round selection in the draft in 2020 and traded him to the Miami Dolphins for a measly 7th round pick only 11 months later in one of the most bizarre situations in recent memory. Imagine having a Lamborghini and trading it for a bag of chips and a ham sandwich.

What happened?

The incidents seem to start before Wilson even signed his first NFL contract.  On July 28th, it was announced that Wilson would be hitting the Reserve/COVID list.  This meant that Wilson had tested positive or came in contact with someone who tested positive, thus requiring a quarantine period until the player was deemed healthy to ensure the safety of other players.  

Wilson had a short stint on the Reserve/COVID list and by August 3rd, Wilson was removed from the list and signed his first pro contract.

On August 15th the rookie received a trespass warning after Tennessee State University police broke up an off-campus party he attended back on August 15.  According to a police report obtained by Paul Kuharsky, “Mr. Isaiah Wilson got up from the couch and ran to the balcony to jump from the second floor.”

This party would lead to a second stint on the Reserve/COVID list starting on September 6th.  Wilson was expected to compete for the starting right tackle job against veteran Dennis Kelly, but due to absences this never materialized and Kenny easily won the job and held onto it for the season.

During this second stint on the list, Wilson found himself in more trouble off of the football field.  Late on September 11th, Wilson was allegedly doing “donuts” in an intersection and lost control of his vehicle and smashed it into a concrete wall. According to the police report, Wilson smelled of alcohol and his eyes were watery.  Upon completing field sobriety tests and a consensual breath test, Wilson returned with a .107% result.  Which is well above the legal limit of .08%.  This led to his arrest and a DUI.

On October 10th Wilson was activated from the Reserve/COVID list prior to a game against the Buffalo Bills.  At this point, Wilson was the only non-quarterback to be selected in the first round to not see any game time on the field, and his activation did not guarantee he would appear in the game or even dress in uniform. 

On November 20th Wilson was finally elevated to the active roster for a Week 11 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens. According to beat writer Paul Keharsky, this was more for depth necessity rather than merit.  

Wilson did not appear against the Ravens, though he did take the field for the first time the next week in a blowout victory against the Indianapolis Colts.  Though it was for only 4 (non-consequential) plays.  

The next week Wilson was suspended and the week after placed on the non-football injury list.  He was placed here for “personal reasons” and subsequently shut down for the season.  This was in December.

In February Titans GM Jon Robinson said he and Wilson never spoke from that point on. Less than a week later Wilson tweeted, then deleted, “I’m done with football as a Titan…No further comments.”

Two days later Ian Rapoport reported that the Titans had been shopping Wilson and were open to dealing him to another team for a fresh start.  It is unknown if Wilson caught wind of these rumors prior to his tweet.  

Finally, on March 8th, the Miami Dolphins swooped in with their offer of a 7th round pick, and the trade was done. Wilson will be reuniting with his college teammate Solomon Kindley and have a connection to head coach Brian Flores’ through their high school in Brooklyn, New York (both went to Poly Prep). The hope for Wilson and the Dolphins is to resurrect what has been an awful start to his career.

Wilson certainly did not help himself along the way, but one would hope this trade will help him move forward and allow him to succeed.