NFL draft expert has Clemson's Nate Wiggins going early in the first found

Nate Wiggins is Clemson's top shot to have a first round NFL draft pick this year, and he could go fairly early.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sat Feb 24 07:00:02 GMT-04:00 2024

Without question, cornerback Nate Wiggins will be the highest-drafted Clemson player in the 2024 NFL Draft this year.

In fact, NFL Draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah has Wiggins getting selected No. 15 overall in his most recent mock draft, saying that Wiggins is “going to put on a show at the NFL Scouting Combine” and added that Wiggins could get drafted even earlier as he is the “big-time-traits corner in this year’s draft.”

Jeremiah’s analysis of Wiggins’ draft position seems to be pretty common with other mock drafts. According to NFL Mock Draft Database, Wiggins has a 75.6 percent chance of getting drafted in the first round, and on average, in mock drafts, is ranked as No. 16. They have not seen a mock draft where Wiggins goes in the top-10, however, which is probably due to the volume of quarterbacks and receivers projected to get drafted in the first round. Still, one mock draft has Wiggins going as high as No. 11 overall to the Minnesota Vikings.

Wiggins started to break out his sophomore season back in 2022 when he was a first-team All-ACC selection by College Football Network after recording 29 tackles, including two for loss, a team-high of 12 pass breakups, a blocked field goal, and his first career interception, which he returned 98 yards for a touchdown against North Carolina in the ACC championship.

His junior year campaign was also impressive as he was a first-team All-ACC selection in addition to All-ACC honors from AP, USA Today and PFF. Once again, he had 29 tackles, including one for loss, two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown against Florida Atlantic, along with two forced fumbles. The second of those came against the Tar Heels in a play head coach Dabo Swinney will never forget.

“I’ll be talking about that for the rest of my career. It was incredible. That kid can absolutely fly. There are a lot of people who are fast, but there are others who are as fast as they need to be,” Swinney said. “And (Andrew) Mukuba’s effort on the play was amazing as well. He dives out and just clips his heel, and that little bit of a clip allowed Nate more time to get there. Nate was at a little more than 22 miles an hour, just smoking. It was one of the greatest plays I’ve seen. It was such a momentum play, too. And we’ve been on the other side of that this year, too, as y’all know. I’ve been on both sides of it. Boom, right afterward, we go on an 80-yard touchdown drive.”

Clemson CB Nate Wiggins has first round size, speed and coverage skills

But his effort also stands out

Check out the pursuit (and speed) on two separate runs this season

Wiggins (top of screen) chases down and forces a fumble that was overturned to a touchback and another… pic.twitter.com/rWIseMdTU3
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 13, 2024

With his elite speed and always giving full effort on every play, Wiggins will surely be a strong asset to whatever NFL team he lands on. He will participate in the NFL Combine on March 1, with drills starting at 3 p.m. (NFL Network), which should really help boost his profile. He will also have the chance to participate in Clemson’s Pro Day if he chooses (March 13). The NFL Draft will start on April 25 in Detroit (8 p.m./ABC-NFLN-ESPN).