Pound-for-pound, there are not 161 better football players in the 2026 NFL Draft than Duke's Chandler Rivers.
Heck, there aren't 61 better players.
But at a shade under 5-foot-10, his size was always going to negatively impact his draft stock. In fact, despite the consensus being that Rivers was the top NFL Draft prospect for Duke, an ESPN expert actually had him going undrafted in a seven-round mock draft this week.
Rivers' wait finally came to an end in the 5th round with the Baltimore Ravens taking him with the 162nd overall pick:
Welcome to Baltimore, @_ChandlerRivers 😈 pic.twitter.com/LFA2wHH6OH
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 25, 2026
Chandler Rivers selected by the Ravens in the 5th Round
Rivers was a rare player in this era of college football. He started and finished his career at Duke, playing all four seasons of his career with the Blue Devils, despite a coaching change in the middle of his run. Rivers came to Durham to play for Mike Elko, and certainly had Transfer Portal opportunities when Elko took the job at Texas A&M, but he chose to stay and play for Manny Diaz.
Rivers played a significant role for the Blue Devils in all four of his college seasons. He was a 1st Team All-ACC pick as a junior in 2024 and followed that up with an All-ACC 2nd Team selection during his senior season, while helping lead the Blue Devils to the program's first outright ACC Championship since 1962.
Rivers is a sticky corner who doesn't give much separation. He plays much bigger than his size and stays in the hip pocket of receivers.
The former Duke star had to wait longer than expected, but it's hard to find a better landing spot for him than the Ravens, which has long been one of the best run franchises in the NFL.
Rivers is the second Duke player off the board in the NFL Draft. His former teammate, DE Wesley Wiliams, was picked by the Jacksonville Jaguars with the 119th overall pick in the 4th Round.
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