2024 NFL mock draft: Baltimore Ravens select CB Nate Wiggins

We’ve moved past the Detroit Lions’ first pick in the Pride of Detroit Community Mock Draft, and now it’s time to close out the first round with the final three picks.

Up first is the Baltimore Ravens, who are represented by commenter MaizeAndBlueWahoo. After a dominant regular season, the Ravens fell just short of the Super Bowl, and it felt like a little bit of a last-chance opportunity. They lost their defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, Jadaveon Clowney, Patrick Queen, Kevin Zeitler, Morgan Moses, John Simpson, Ronald Darby, Rock Ya-Sin, and a lot more.

That said, they’ve still got a core foundation, and with a strong draft, they could be right back in the AFC Championship game next year.

Before we get into their pick, you can get a quick refresher on the first 28 picks with our POD Community Mock Draft tracker.

Onto the pick.

With the 30th pick in the Pride of Detroit Community Mock Draft, the Baltimore Ravens have selected Nate Wiggins, cornerback out of Clemson.

Here’s MaizeAndBlueWahoo to explain the pick:

“Sometimes you just don’t overthink things.

“The Ravens were a cap-strapped, veteran team in 2023, and as such, have been eroding talent in a lot of places during the offseason. They simply couldn’t afford to keep some really good pieces. It leaves a wide variety of needs on both sides of the ball—as such, there are a lot of good fits with the available talent at #30. Darius Robinson would fit extremely well at DE in the Ravens’ 3-4 defense. Tyler Guyton or Jordan Morgan would fill a large hole on the offensive line (the Ravens lost three strong veterans there to free agency). Keon Coleman would be a tremendous complement to the skills of Zay Flowers at wide receiver, where the Ravens are light on high-end talent.

“But none of them are the mythical BPA. Nate Wiggins is a consensus top 20-25 player, and with good reason: elite athleticism and high-level coverage skills. His RAS of 9.43 is higher than 94% of cornerbacks in that database, and that’s with his very skinny frame holding him back. Wiggins’ speed is incredible and his coverage skills would let him start right away in the NFL.

“The only real flaw to Wiggins is his frame and weight—he weighed in at 173 pounds at the combine. If he were 15 pounds heavier, he’d probably be a top-ten pick. His tackling suffers as a result, so he’s not the greatest in run support. But when you break up passes, you don’t need to tackle.

“Down here at #30, there will always be some flaws in every prospect’s game. Wiggins has fewer than most. He’s got a huge ceiling and pretty high floor, too. The Ravens will look to fill other needs later in the draft; right now, they’re taking by far the best player available, who also happens to fill a secondary need (slight pun intended.)”