Nate Wiggins Establishing Himself In Ravens' Secondary (NFL)
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Nate Wiggins Establishing Himself In Ravens' Secondary

Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
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Baltimore Ravens rookie cornerback Nate Wiggins is establishing himself in the defensive backfield. Wiggins recorded a career-high two pass breakups in Sunday's thrilling 41-38 Week 5 overtime victory over their AFC North rival Cincinnati Bengals. The former Clemson standout is already playing a big-time role on an excellent 3-2 Ravens team that's beginning to hit its stride.

Veteran cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Brandon Stephens have been playing boundary corner in base defense. When the Ravens transition to nickel defense, football's most popular personnel grouping nowadays, Humphrey is kicking inside to the slot, making room for Wiggins to enter the game on the outside opposite Stephens. Wiggins is Baltimore's third-most snapped corner at 127 snaps, with 113 of them occurring on the boundary.

Baltimore's coaching staff has begun placing more trust in Wiggins. He played a season-high 51 snaps (86% of Baltimore's defensive plays) in the Week 4 blowout win over the Buffalo Bills, helping the secondary limit elite quarterback Josh Allen to 180 passing yards and zero touchdowns. For some reason, that number was downgraded to just 21 snaps versus the Bengals. Joe Burrow threw for 392 yards and five touchdowns.

The Ravens are currently fielding the league's 31st-ranked passing defense, allowing 280.2 air yards per outing. The secondary is far too talented to deliver such disappointing results. If John Harbaugh is going to consider changes, Wiggins should replace Stephens in base defense opposite Humphrey.

The No. 30 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, Wiggins has allowed eight receptions on 12 targets this season, according to Pro Football Focus. He's allowed 139 receiving yards while seeing an average depth of target (aDoT) of 12.6. Opposing quarterbacks are seeing a passer rating of 105.9 when targeting him in coverage. Wiggins hasn't allowed any touchdowns, and he's forced three incompletions. His 25% forced incompletion percentage is a position-high result among all Ravens cornerbacks.

Wiggins also has room for improvement in certain areas. His inexperience has shown by being whistled for three penalties, tying Humphrey for the team lead in that category in Baltimore's cornerback room. Wiggins has also been credited with two dropped interceptions.

The Ravens are also trusting Wiggins to play man coverage. The ex-Tigers defender has played man-to-man coverage on 36.2% of his coverage snaps. Humphrey and Stephens are trending around 30%. Wiggins' PFF coverage grade in man is a second-best 66.6, better than Stephens' 58.2. On occasion, it’s been trial by fire for an inexperienced cornerback giving up 17.4 yards per reception.

The Ravens will host the Washington Commanders and dynamic rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels in Week 6. Daniels is spearheading an elite offense that's producing a fifth-best 392.6 yards per game. A struggling Ravens defense will be tested, and Wiggins should be a big part of defensive coordinator Zach Orr's game plan.

The Ravens are struggling to defend the pass. Wiggins has been among their best-performing cornerbacks when afforded the opportunity. Wiggins should be inserted into the starting lineup more frequently moving forward.



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