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It appears that the Baltimore Ravens may have dodged a bullet in the first week of the preseason with one of their young stars. Fans got a hopeful injury update about their 2024 first round draft pick CB Nate Wiggins about his shoulder injury.
The Athletics’ Jeff Zrebiec posted on Saturday, August 10, “The Ravens are confident that rookie CB Nate Wiggins, who hurt his shoulder Friday night, avoided a really significant injury.”
Wiggins was playing exceptionally well in the preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday, August 9 before he appeared to suffer a shoulder injury.
Zrebiec wrote in his article recapping the game, “Wiggins immediately hopped to his feet to celebrate the tackle, but it became clear as he headed to the sideline that he was in some pain from his right arm/shoulder area.”
The Ravens have depth at the CB position, but it is quickly being tested with this injury. The likely result is the rookie will be shut down for the rest of training camp, not great for his reps but better in the long run.
“Wiggins could miss some practice time but Ravens still optimistic for Week 1,” Zrebiec explained. If Wiggins is able to suit up for the game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1, the Ravens will consider that a win under the circumstances.
CB Nate Wiggins Showed Why He Was a 1st-Round Pick
Wiggins gave fans a taste of what could be expected with his performance against the Eagles on Friday night.
Wiggins had 3 combined tackles (including a tackle for loss) and 3 passes defended. Now it was against the backups, but one of those was QB Kenny Pickett who started for the Pittsburgh Steelers just last year.
Zrebiec wrote about the corner’s play, “He was anticipating throws, attaching himself to pass catchers, hunting interceptions and making plays on the ball.”
When Wiggins fell to the Ravens at pick 30 in the draft general manager Eric DeCosta jumped all over the pick. It seemed liked another great defender fell into the Ravens’ lap and Wiggins performance was the first step in proving it was the correct pick.
Wiggins next task will be to come back for this injury ready to go and hit the ground running. Three of the first four games on the Ravens include three of the top QBs in the NFL.
QBs Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott and Josh Allen will test the Ravens’ defense right out of the gate and Baltimore will want to be at full strength against the three juggernauts. All this to say, it would be a mistake to rush the young CB back too quickly and lead to a worse injury.
Ravens CB Depth Being Tested Quickly
This has been a tough week for the Ravens and their cornerback depth. Zrebiec pointed out that the Ravens had strong depth at the position, but this week may have put a dent in that depth.
Besides the loss of Wiggins for the minimum training camp, the Ravens lost their likely starting nickel corner earlier in the week.
CB Arthur Maulet suffered an injury during practice that is going to sideline him for the first month while he gets his knee scoped. The Ravens still have Marlon Humphrey and Brandon Stephens manning the outside positions, but as they just found out injuries occur quickly.
Humphrey dealt with multiple injuries during the 2023 season and the hope is he turned the corner on the health front, but DeCosta needs to be ready.
The GM may turn to the free agent market to bring in a veteran, if the injury concerns continue. He will also have the opportunity to pick off players that get trimmed from other rosters but if Wiggins recovers well there may not be the need.
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