Ravens Week 16 Rookie Report: Nate Wiggins was solid; Rosengarten handles T.J. Watt

The first-round cornerback played well in two phases while the second-round offensive lineman held one of the pass rushers in the league at bay.

The Baltimore Ravens snapped a four-game skid against the Pittsburgh Steelers dating back to the 2022 season and avoided getting swept by their archrivals for the second year in a row by notching a vindicating 34-17 victory on Saturday night and got significant contributions from several members of their 2024 rookie class. Their first two selections continued to stand out while two of their Day 3 picks saw action outside of special teams for the second week in a row.

Of the team’s rookies, only three—outside linebacker Adisa Isaac and center Nick Samac—were inactive while safety Sanoussi Kane and cornerback T.J. Tampa were active after missing time with injuries. Here is how the rest of Baltimore’s first-year players fared in their latest taste of regular-season NFL action.

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CB Nate Wiggins

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For the sixth game in a row, Wiggins played over 60% of the team’s total defensive snaps with 82% which tied for the third-highest of his career. With George Pickens out, Wiggins didn’t face a third straight daunting challenge but played well in coverage all the same with the only big catch he gave up being a perfectly placed deep ball for 44 yards from Russell Wilson to wide receiver Calvin Austin on the boundary that took and impressive adjustment toe-drag to complete. Even if Wiggins had gotten his head around, Wilson put the ball in a place where either it was going to fall right in Austin’s breadbasket or drop harmlessly out of bounds.

Wiggins finished the game with three total tackles including two solos and he could’ve had another after he made first contact on a kickoff following the Ravens first scoring drive of the game. Even though he didn’t make the tackle, his effort slowed up Steelers All Pro return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson enough for veteran linebacker Malik Harrison to come finish the job, limiting the return to just 18 yards.

OT Roger Rosengarten

Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The second-rounder went up against one of the best and most disruptive edge defenders in the league for the second time this season and had one of his best performances to date as T.J. Watt was held in check and without a sack or quarterback. Rosengarten had several impressive one-on-one reps against Watt who recorded just four total tackles including just one solo. It marked the first time in his last 11 games against the Ravens where the six-time Pro Bowler and former Defensive Player of the Year didn’t log at least half a sack.

In addition to answering a tremendous challenge in pass protection, Rosengarten continued to show improvement and even dominance at times as a run blocker. He had his fourth straight game with an overall Pro Football Focus grade in the mid-to-high 70s with a 74.9 which was the fifth-highest of all Ravens offensive players. Rosengarten scored higher in run blocking than in pass blocking for the first time since Week 9 with a career-high 75.5.

“Nothing really phases him,” Harbaugh said Sunday. “He’s a very confident guy. At the same time, he understands that he’s … I don’t think he thinks he’s ever going to arrive. He’s the kind of guy that’s just tough. He’s kind of a football … [He has] a football head. He likes football, and he likes to work at it, and he’s a competitive guy, and he wants to do well. He’s very tenacious, and it’s paying off.”

WR Devontez Walker

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Walker was active for the seventh time this season and saw his second-highest amount of snaps on both offense and special teams of his rookie year. The fourth-rounder’s nine offensive snaps were just two shy of his career-high 11 that he set last week in a blowout win over the New York Giants. Walker’s 21 snaps on special teams were his most since Week 8 when he logged 23 in a narrow loss to the Cleveland Browns. While he didn’t record a reception for the second week in a row, he still made an impactful play on the first punt of the game when he downed the ball at the Pittsburgh one-yard line after fellow wideout Tylan Wallace made the initial clutch play of keeping it from bouncing into the end zone.

CB T.J. Tampa

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After missing the last seven games while on injured reserve recovering from a hamstring injury, the fourth-round cornerback was back in action but hardly saw the field as he was limited to a season-low nine special teams snaps and none on defense.

RB Rasheen Ali

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The fifth-rounder was active for the third straight game and not only saw some action on offense but touched the ball as well. Ali didn’t get a chance to return a kickoff but did pick up two yards on his lone carry and ninth of the season to bring his total to 34 and bring down his average slightly to 3.8. Even after veteran running back Justice Hill left the game with a concussion, Ali still saw fewer snaps than he did in last week’s win over the Giants with nine compared to the 10 he received a week ago and he played a season-low six snaps on special teams. His offensive involvement could be poised to increase significantly if Hill is unable to clear the concussion protocol in time for Wednesday’s quick turnaround game on Christmas against the Houston Texans in Week 17.

DB Sanoussi Kane

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After missing just his second game of the season with an injury last week, Kane was back in action against the Steelers and played exclusively on special teams for the 11th time in his 13 appearances. His 21 special teams snaps tied Walker for the most among rookies and all players on the team.

DB Beau Brade

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For the ninth time in the last 10 weeks, the undrafted rookie safety out of Maryland was active on game day for special teams duties. He played 21 snaps in the third phase of the game, which tied him with Kane and Walker for the most on the team on Saturday.