Ravens Shut Out of Top 10 CB Ranking

Throughout the offseason, the Baltimore Ravens made it a point to invest heavily at the cornerback position, signing both Jaire Alexander and Chidobe Awuzie in free agency. Combined with slot corner Marlon Humphrey coming off an All-Pro season and 2024 first-round pick Nate Wiggins poised to take a big step forward in Year 2, cornerback looks like it could be a position of strength for Baltimore this season.

If that is the case, though, it may be due to the depth instead of one true star.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler conducted a poll among NFL coaches and executives to find the 10 best cornerbacks in the league, and no Ravens made the list itself. Humphrey earned an honorable mention, while Wiggins and Alexander landed in the "others receiving votes" category.

An NFL coordinator said of Humphrey: "He's best in the slot at this stage, but he's such a natural in there, very disruptive and can get the ball, physical."

It's a disappointing result considering Humphrey and Alexander have both been some of the NFL's best cornerbacks since entering the league in 2017 and 2018, respectively. However, it seems their injury struggles — particularly for Alexander, who's only played 14 games over the past two seasons
— affected their perception around the league, despite both still playing well when healthy.

More than that, though, cornerback is a position dominated by youngsters. Six out of the top 10 corners in this poll are 24 years old or younger, while only one — Cleveland Browns star Denzel Ward, who came in at No. 3 — is older than 26.

Despite that, the Ravens are more than happy to have a host of corners who can still play at a high level, even if none of them are in the top 10 anymore.

"A quote that's never been said and probably will never be said in NFL history is, 'We've got too many corners that can cover,' so I think that's a great problem to have, and I'm really excited for that addition [of Alexander]," Humphrey told reporters on June 18.