The Baltimore Ravens are getting the version of Nate Wiggins they needed to see in 2026. After an underwhelming 2025, he’s putting together a rock-solid campaign and looks like a CB1 six weeks in. However, while Jesse Minter’s defensive expertise has helped him improve, there may be another level to unlock.
In the NFL, Wiggins has been at his best in press coverage. Despite his 6-foot-1, 182-pound frame, he thrives on physicality — match that with his speed, and it’s easy for him to consistently win. And in the limited press opportunities Wiggins has gotten this year, he’s dominated.
How often CBs are in press coverage and their overall ability to prevent separation pic.twitter.com/vB8N5XTBeT
— Jrfortgang (@throwthedamball) October 20, 2026
Clearly, Wiggins doesn't allow much separation in press. The bad news? He's pressing less than 20% of the time.
Unfortunately, Minter runs mostly zone concepts with Wiggins and other cornerbacks lined up off the line. It worked extremely well in Week 6, as Baltimore’s defense delivered a lights-out performance in the loss. For Wiggins, though, Minter could stand to give him more freedom.
Baltimore Ravens should allow Nate Wiggins to shine in press coverage more often
Don’t get me wrong, Nate Wiggins is already playing well. I’m not sure his 68.6 Pro Football Focus grade does him justice. Still, that ranks 23rd among cornerbacks, and he’s doing a strong job in coverage with an 89.1 passer rating.
As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
But if you want Wiggins to be your lockdown corner, you have to utilize him to his strengths. Press coverage is a vastly better fit for his skills than dropping in zone.
Jesse Minter obviously won’t bail on his zone coverage schemes, and he shouldn’t. That's what makes him an elite defensive mind. However, he should consider blending the two concepts more, with Wiggins at the forefront.
Wiggins shadowing the WR1 on a down-to-down basis is the clearest answer. We saw a little bit of it in Week 5 against the Atlanta Falcons, where Wiggins followed Drake London at points throughout the matchup. It could've worked better, though, especially if he was more consistently shadowing him and playing up closer to the line of scrimmage.
If Minter wants to keep his zone designs intact, a jam-and-sink technique is an option. That’d allow Wiggins to jam the receiver’s release at the snap, then drop off into a zone. It wouldn’t fully display what makes him special, but his physicality would certainly help throw off an offense’s rhythm.
Mixing in more press technique may also help hide Wiggins’ biggest flaw: his tackling. This year, he’s struggled to wrap up and bring down ball carriers. According to PFF, the 23-year-old has 3 missed tackles in 2026, ranking 51st among qualifying corners.
Those issues can arise when Wiggins is playing off in zone. Coming downhill and meeting a ball carrier in space has been a weak point at times. Allowing him to press receivers off the line and play in close quarters could limit issues in one-on-one situations, though it wouldn’t eliminate them.
Ultimately, Minter will do what’s best for the defense as a whole, not just Wiggins. If that goal utilizes Wiggins as a zone-cover corner, so be it. But giving Wiggins more press responsibilities might build him into a shutdown corner, and if you have one guy holding things down on an island on one side, this defense would feast.
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