The Baltimore Ravens were excited for quarterback Lamar Jackson’s Week 8 return after the team suffered two consecutive losses in Weeks 6 and 7. But that joy didn’t last long, as Jackson left early in his comeback game against the Buffalo Bills. In Week 9, sans Jackson and backup QB Tyler Huntley, the Baltimore Ravens also hauled in an embarrassing 33-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars this Thursday.
However, The Athletic senior writer Jeff Zrebiec revealed via an X post on November 5 that Minter had refused to provide an update on Jackson’s status.
“Minter wouldn’t comment on whether Lamar Jackson had surgery or whether team expects him back this season,” Zrebiec wrote. Jackson sustained a potentially season-ending thumb injury in his throwing hand on the very first play against Buffalo and was forced to leave the field.
Jackson’s IR relegation comes as a blow to the Ravens’ QB depth chart, since Huntley is also out for the season with a turf toe injury. This forced Minter to start with undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano to make his debut in Week 9 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“When you lose your quarterback early, we lost him on the first play, that’ll be a surgery deal. He’ll go to IR. That’s a tough deal,” Minter said after the Buffalo game. “And then the next guy as well, I thought Joe came in, to his credit, not really getting a lot of reps in preparation. Hung in there, did some good stuff. And so it’s a short week. You know, it’s an opportunity, again, to stick together, to work together, come together, and, you know, we’ll figure out what we have, what we have available, and we’ll try to put the best plan out there for this short week.”
However, Fagnano was already nursing a right ankle issue earlier in the week and practiced with a heavy brace. But the rookie managed to be a full participant by Tuesday and played as a starter on Thursday. Despite his efforts, the rookie completed just 10 out of 18 attempts for 60 passing yards and failed to make a touchdown, leading to the Ravens’ 33-10 loss.
This marks yet another season in which Lamar Jackson will be absent for the majority of the season. His absence is a massive blow to the Ravens as he seemed to be on a roll thus far into the season. Jackson had posted a total of 967 passing yards in the four games he played before his initial injury. He had thrown for 222 yards in the Tennessee game alone before he left with the injury. Barring the Buffalo game, the Ravens had lost only one game with Jackson in play.
He remains such an important factor that Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor admitted to practicing for the Ravens game with the precaution that Lamar Jackson could be activated.
Tyler Huntley had been doing a decent enough job for the Ravens in his absence, winning one and losing two games as starter. Not long after Jackson left the Bills game, Huntley also followed him out with his turf toe injury.
The Ravens now have their back against the wall. Fagnano is still a rookie, and clearly needs more time to settle in after being thrust into the fire. The Ravens also had no other QB remaining on the active roster apart from Fagnano, forcing the team to make some urgent roster moves.
Ravens Make New Additions to Bolster Injured QB Room
The Ravens also signed Austin Reed to their practice roster this week, later moving him to the 53-man active roster to serve as second-string backup. The front office also signed Kedon Slovis from the Green Bay Packers’ roster.
More importantly, they are also finalizing a trade for veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett, although he has yet to officially sign a contract with the Baltimore team.
Once Brissett officially joins the team and is integrated into the offense, he can beexpected to take over as the starting quarterback. The 33-year-old veteran has played 11 seasons in the league, recording 86 touchdowns for 16,485 yards across 109 games.
This season, he played eight games with the Arizona Cardinals, scoring 10 touchdowns for 1,719 yards. However, ever since the team replaced him with Gardner Minshew, who remarkably saved the Cardinals from a loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Brissett’s exit was written on the wall.
Brissett is no Jackson. But given the lack of other reliable options for the Ravens, it’s either him or the other inexperienced options available for Baltimore.