Chandler Rivers had to wait longer than he expected to hear his name called, but when the call finally came, it confirmed exactly where he believed he belonged.
The Baltimore Ravens made that moment real when they selected the Duke cornerback with the No. 162 overall pick in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
“Obviously, I thought I should’ve [gone] higher in the draft,” Rivers said on Glenn Clark Radio April 30. “But I believe in God and I feel like everything happens for a reason, and when I got that call it was just like a relief.”
A Beaumont, Texas, native, Rivers built his reputation on consistency and perseverance. He started as a freshman at Duke and never looked back, appearing in every game of his four-year college career.
Rivers recorded 223 total tackles and seven interceptions during his time with the Blue Devils. At 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds, the cornerback became a leader in the program and helped guide the Blue Devils to an ACC championship last year.
Rivers emphasized that his reliability comes from discipline.
“I just feel like I take care of my body at a high level, honestly,” Rivers said. “All of it is really God. Anything can happen in the game of football. It’s an aggressive sport. Anything can happen any play.”
Even before draft day, Baltimore was already on Rivers’ mind. He just hoped that’s where he would end up.
“If I could choose one place I want to be, I want to be in Baltimore,” Rivers said. “I feel like I can make an impact for that team. … They’ve got a lot of great players on the team.”
One of those players is quarterback Lamar Jackson, someone Rivers has admired for years. Rivers shouted “Lamarvelous” after being told by Ravens GM Eric DeCosta that Baltimore was about to draft him, a moment that quickly went viral.
“When I was in eighth or ninth grade, he had just got drafted,” Rivers said. “He’s had a great career up until this point. He’s a global phenom honestly…so it feels good to be a part of his team now.”
Rivers will also reunite in Baltimore with former Duke teammate Aeneas “Fub” Peebles, a defensive lineman who was selected by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft (No. 210 overall). The relationship between the two runs deep.
“Fub, he is like a big brother to me,” Rivers said. “Everything I needed, he was always there for me. … We talk damn near every day up until this point for the past two years. It feels good to be able to play with him again.”
Rivers’ path to this moment has been shaped by family as much as football. His father coached him growing up, instilling a mindset built on effort and physicality.
“My dad has been my coach all my life and you’ve got to be able to tackle to be on the field,” Rivers said. “I take pride in that. … If I’m in the position to make a tackle, I expect to make a tackle.”
That mentality showed early on at Duke. Rivers chose the program not just for football, but for opportunity.
“I come from an academic family, so I knew what I was going to get out of them academically,” he said. “And athletically, I wanted to have a chance to play as a true freshman. … I feel like Duke gave me that best opportunity.”
Despite entering the draft with expectations of hearing his name called on Day 2, Rivers leaned on a mindset that has followed him throughout his career.
“I’ve always been like the underdog, the underhyped player,” Rivers said. “Everywhere I’ve been in my career, I’ve had to earn my keeps, so I just stay with that mindset honestly. It never slips.”
Now, Rivers arrives in Baltimore ready to prove himself all over again and earn everything that comes his way.
“It’s amazing,” Rivers said. “Baltimore is a known brand around the country. … I’ve got to go up there, earn my stripes, earn my spot and everything like that. But as of right now, I’m a Baltimore Raven. It feels amazing honestly.”
Rivers is not changing anything about the mindset that brought him to the pros.
“The right team got me,” Rivers said. “That’s all that matters at the end of the day.”
For more from Rivers, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Duke Athletics