Early Reports Indicate Ravens May Have Avoided Major Injury With Top CB Nate Wiggins

The young corner is being counted on heavily in Jesse Minter's first season as head coach, and was carted off from practice Tuesday

Baltimore Ravens cornerback Nate Wiggins (2) tackles Green Bay Packers wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks (13) after Wicks catches a pass on Saturday, December 27, 2025, at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

There is no definitive timetable yet for Ravens cornerback Nate Wiggins after he went down in practice Tuesday and had to be carted off the field. Head coach Jesse Minter said after practice that he is “optimistic” about the outcome and reports from The Athletic and NFL Network are indicating that will be the case.

While there are still no details on the extent of the injury, an MRI was conducted and Wiggins avoided any real structural damage, according to those reports. Of course, a scenario such as that still doesn’t necessarily mean that Wiggins won’t miss several weeks or more. Minter, also the defensive playcaller, was very nebulous about injury inquiries in general in the offseason, and in his first instance as a head coach, it remains to be seen how directly he will asses these situations.

Wiggins suffered the still-undisclosed injury after tangling with rookie receiver Ja’Kobi Lane. The fact he was carted off, the import of this player and the fact we are still in early August would all point to at least some time on the shelf for Wiggins, who carries a slight frame. Wiggins was already not going to play in Saturday’s pre-season game as one of the team’s key players.

“One of those plays, really not much between those guys,” Minter said of the collision that ended Wiggins’s practice.  “I think there is optimism, but, again, we’ll look at it and see where it’s at.”

Getting Healthy

Wiggins’s departure came at a time when the Ravens defense was getting quite healthy. Defensive linemen John Jenkins and Travis Jones recently returned from the PUP list and Minter said on Tuesday that he believes young linebacker Teddye Buchanan, returning from surgery, could perhaps do the same in the coming weeks.

With Marlon Humphrey coming off a poor 2025 season and off to a rough start in camp – the $19M corner noted Minter rightfully referred to his play as “trash’ this summer –the Ravens need Wiggins to make plays on the ball and continue his ascent. Staying healthy is a big part of that.

Minter lives in nickel and dime coverages loaded with defensive backs and plays as much quarters coverage as anyone in the NFL, something that should help Wiggins flourish. Humphrey is best suited for the slot, and the boundary corner situation gets very murky all of a sudden without Wiggins.

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