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On the first night of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Baltimore Ravens did what they do best.
They capitalized on teams around the league letting a talented player drop too far in the first round.
They did it when Kyle Hamilton fell out of the top 10 because he’s a safety. The Ravens did it again in that same draft when Tyler Linderbaum slipped to the mid-20s.
Most memorably, they did it when Lamar Jackson was sitting there at pick 32.
Now they’ve added another steal to the list by landing Nate Wiggins with the 30th pick.
If you ask Wiggins, not only was he a steal at the pick, but he was also the best corner in this class.
The team’s Twitter page released a video on April 26 showing the phone call between the team’s GM and Wiggins when he got drafted. In the video, he tells Eric DeCosta that the Ravens got the best receiver in the draft.
“I swear to God, y’all got the best one. I swear to God. I’m the best cornerback. I swear, I’m not going to let you down. I’m not going to let you down. I swear to God. I swear, I swear.”
The Case for Wiggins
There are two teams that disagreed with Wiggins’ assessment on draft night.
The Eagles drafted Quinyon Mitchell with pick 22 and the Lions took Terrion Arnold 24th.
However, Wiggins stacks up pretty well against those other two corners.
Of the three corners that were selected in the first round, Wiggins allowed the least yards per catch in 2023. He also held opposing QBs to a lower completion percentage than Arnold and was less than 0.4% behind Mitchell in that category last season despite Mitchell playing a much softer schedule in the MAC.
Wiggins also tested as the fastest of the three at the NFL Combine, finishing with the second best time in the class in the 40-yard dash. He ran it in 4.28 seconds while Mitchell took 4.33 seconds and Arnold lagged well behind at 4.5 seconds.
It’s impossible to know which of them will actually be the best in the NFL with them all putting together strong college careers and having similar draft capital spent on them, but Wiggins can certainly make the case that he’ll be the best in the class.
Where the Ravens Go From Here
The Ravens addressed a major need by taking Wiggins in the first round, but they still have plenty left to do before this draft is over.
Reinforcing their offensive line after losing three of their starters from last season should be one of the biggest priorities.
It didn’t work out for them to be able to take an offensive tackle in round one, but there should be some options with potential to play the right side for them on day two.
Those options include Notre Dame’s Blake Fisher, Washington’s Roger Rosengarten, and Pitt’s Matt Goncalves.
The team could also look to add an edge rusher. They lost Jadeveon Clowney this offseason and with him, they lost 9.5 of their league-leading 60 sacks from last season.
That could lead them to take a look at Alabama’s Chris Braswell, Penn State’s Adisa Isaac, or Houston’s Jonah Elliss.
The team also needs to replace All-Pro Patrick Queen after he left for the Steelers. Luckily for the Ravens, there hasn’t even been an inside linebacker drafted yet and standouts like Texas A&M’s Edgerrin Cooper and Michigan’s Junior Colson could be available for them.
Wide receiver was also something they were expected to target in this draft, but that may have changed when they signed Rashod Bateman to a contract extension.
However they choose to do it, the Ravens will be looking to continue crossing needs off of their list on day two after taking care of the cornerback position with Wiggins in round one.
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