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James Wiggins (American football)

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James Wiggins
No. 16 – Edmonton Elks
Position:Safety
Personal information
Born: (1997-04-26) April 26, 1997 (age 27)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school:South Dade Senior
(Homestead, Florida)
College:Cincinnati (2016–2020)
NFL draft:2021 / round: 7 / pick: 243
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Suspended list
CFL status:American
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Pro Football Reference

James Wiggins (born April 26, 1997) is an American professional football safety for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Cincinnati, and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL draft.

Early life

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Wiggins attended South Dade Senior High School in Homestead, Florida. He originally committed to the University of Miami to play college football but switched his commitment to the University of Cincinnati.[1][2]

College career

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Wiggins played at Cincinnati from 2016 to 2020. Over the course of his college career, Wiggins was named to Bruce Feldman's college football freaks list multiple times for his outstanding athleticism.[3]

He redshirted his first year in 2016. He became a starter his sophomore year in 2018, a season in which Wiggins would have two game winning interceptions for the Bearcats. In a September win over Ohio that year, Wiggins' interception at the 1-yard line with 52 seconds left clinched a 34–30 victory. The following month at SMU, his 86-yard "Pick Six" in overtime ended UC's 26–20 win over the Mustangs.[4]

Wiggins missed the 2019 season due to a torn ACL.[5][6] Wiggins returned from the injury in 2020 and was named an All-American by The Athletic.[7]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
5 ft 11+1⁄4 in
(1.81 m) 		209 lb
(95 kg) 		29 in
(0.74 m) 		9+3⁄4 in
(0.25 m)		 4.41 s 1.53 s 2.62 s 38.0 in
(0.97 m)		 10 ft 7 in
(3.23 m)		 22 reps
All values from Pro Day[8][9][10]

Arizona Cardinals

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Wiggins was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the seventh round (243rd overall) of the 2021 NFL draft.[11] On May 20, 2021, Wiggins signed his four-year rookie contract with Arizona. He was waived on August 31, 2021 and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[12][13] He was promoted to the active roster on October 12, 2021. He was placed on injured reserve on December 4.[14]

On August 30, 2022, Wiggins was waived by the Cardinals.[15]

Kansas City Chiefs

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On September 6, 2022, Wiggins signed with the practice squad of the Kansas City Chiefs.[16] He was released from the practice squad on September 13, 2022.[17]

Green Bay Packers

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On January 10, 2023, Wiggins signed a reserve/future contract with the Green Bay Packers.[18] Wiggins was released by Green Bay on May 15, 2023.[19]

New Orleans Breakers

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Wiggins signed with the New Orleans Breakers of the United States Football League (USFL) on May 30, 2023.[20] The Breakers folded when the XFL and USFL merged to create the United Football League (UFL).[21]

Birmingham Stallions

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On January 5, 2023, Wiggins was drafted by the Birmingham Stallions during the 2024 UFL dispersal draft.[22] He was released on March 10, 2024.[23]

Edmonton Elks

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Wiggins signed with the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League on March 11, 2024. He was placed on the reserve/suspended list on May 12, 2024.[24]

References

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  1. ^ Herald, Miami. "South Dade's James Wiggins decommits from UM | High School Sports Blog". miamiherald.typepad.com.
  2. ^ Herald, Miami. "Former UM commit Wiggins announces commitment to Cincinnati | High School Sports Blog". miamiherald.typepad.com.
  3. ^ "James Wiggins Putting Himself In Position To Rise Up NFL Draft Boards". thedraftnetwork.com.
  4. ^ Hoard, Dan. "HOARD: Wiggins Sets Lofty Goal In Return To Secondary". UC Athletics.
  5. ^ Jenkins, Keith. "Cincinnati Bearcats safety James Wiggins eager to start season following turbulent year". The Enquirer.
  6. ^ Williams, Justin. "James Wiggins is back and his biggest plays are the ones you don't see". The Athletic.
  7. ^ "Wiggins Snags First-team All-America Honor From The Athletic". University of Cincinnati Athletics.
  8. ^ "James Wiggins Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  9. ^ "2021 Draft Scout James Wiggins, Cincinnati NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  10. ^ "James Wiggins 2021 NFL Draft Profile". insider.espn.com. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  11. ^ Odegard, Kyle (May 1, 2021). "Cardinals Add Gowan, Dimukeje, Wiggins, Menet In Late Rounds". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  12. ^ Urban, Darren (August 31, 2021). "Initial Roster Set As Cardinals Cut Down For Season". AZCardinals.com.
  13. ^ Urban, Darren (September 1, 2021). "Chris Banjo Among 9 Cardinals Add To Practice Squad". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2021. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
  14. ^ Urban, Darren (December 4, 2021). "Cardinals Again Sign Tavien Feaster, Beau Brinkley To Roster". AZCardinals.com.
  15. ^ Urban, Darren (August 30, 2022). "Cardinals Make Final Cutdown To Get To Initial 53-Man Roster". AZCardinals.com.
  16. ^ Goldman, Charles (September 6, 2022). "Chiefs make a pair of moves on the practice squad". USAToday.com. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
  17. ^ @Chiefs (September 13, 2022). "We have signed K Matt Ammendola, CB Dicaprio Bootle, & WR Corey Coleman to the Practice Squad. We have placed CB Trent McDuffie on Reserve/Injured. We released S James Wiggins from the practice squad" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "Packers sign 13 free agents". packers.com. January 10, 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  19. ^ "Packers release S James Wiggins". packers.com. May 15, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  20. ^ @USFLBreakers (May 30, 2023). "Free Agent Signing" (Tweet). Retrieved May 31, 2023 – via Twitter.
  21. ^ Seifert, Kevin (January 1, 2024). "Newly formed United Football League sets 8 markets, tabs coaches". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
  22. ^ "UFL - Team Rosters". www.theufl.com. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  23. ^ "UFL Teams Set their Training Camp Rosters to 58". UFLBoard.com. March 10, 2024. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  24. ^ "James Wiggins". footballdb.com. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
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