Joe Fagnano Will Make His First NFL Start Thursday: What the Ravens Are Asking of an Undrafted Rookie
The Ravens will start an undrafted rookie quarterback on national television Thursday night, and they are doing it because there is nobody else left.
Jesse Minter confirmed it Tuesday. “We’ll be starting Joe at quarterback this week on Thursday,” the first-year head coach said of Joe Fagnano. Baltimore hosts the 5-2 Jaguars at 8:15 p.m. ET on Prime Video.
How Baltimore Got Here
Lamar Jackson hurt his throwing hand on the Ravens’ first offensive snap at Buffalo on Sunday, when Bills edge rusher Greg Rousseau caught his hand on the follow-through. Minter has declined to say whether the thumb is broken or dislocated. It requires surgery, and Jackson is headed to injured reserve, which means a minimum of four games: Jacksonville, the Chargers, at Carolina, at Houston. Asked whether the season could be finished for the two-time MVP, Minter said, “Potentially, but we’ll see where it’s at.”
Tyler Huntley left the same game in the second quarter with a right toe injury that a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter is believed to be turf toe. Ian Rapoport reported he will miss extended time. Huntley is out Thursday and a candidate for IR himself.
That leaves Fagnano, who was the emergency third quarterback nine days ago, and Kedon Slovis, signed off Green Bay’s practice squad Tuesday with five career NFL snaps to his name.
Who Fagnano Actually Is
He is 25, from Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and he took the long way. Fagnano walked on at Maine, earned a scholarship and started in the FCS from 2019 through 2022, then transferred to UConn, where a shoulder injury wiped out most of 2023. He threw for 5,252 yards and 48 touchdowns in 24 games as a Husky and went 9-3 as a starter in 2025, with 3,448 yards, 28 touchdowns and one interception.
Baltimore signed him as an undrafted free agent on April 28 and he beat out fellow rookie Diego Pavia for a roster spot. He led all NFL quarterbacks in preseason passing yards, going 56 of 75 for 509 yards with a 100.4 rating over three games.
His regular-season body of work is one relief appearance: 10 of 21 for 91 yards with an interception and a lost fumble at Buffalo, after taking zero first-team practice reps that week. He left that game with a lower-body injury and has been practicing in a brace on his right ankle, limited Monday and full Tuesday.
“It’s next-man-up mentality,” Fagnano said. “My job is to play to the best of my ability.” Minter’s read on him: “He’s cool, calm and collected. He doesn’t really get rattled.”
What It Means for a 4-4 Team
Baltimore has lost three straight and sits last in the AFC North behind Pittsburgh at 6-2, Cincinnati at 5-2 and Cleveland at 5-3. Two games back in November with a third-string quarterback is a hole nobody climbs out of quickly, and the schedule offers no help: the Chargers, then Carolina, then Houston, all without Jackson.
Minter put the math simply. “I think when you lose a guy like Lamar, it’s a little bit of every phase doing a little bit more.”
Fagnano will be the second undrafted rookie quarterback to start for the Ravens in 32 seasons, after Anthony Brown in the 2022 finale, a 27-16 loss at Cincinnati. Jacksonville opened as a 7.5-point favorite with Trevor Lawrence on the other side.
Nobody should judge Fagnano on Thursday. The real question is whether a roster built around the most singular athlete at the position can function without him, and the early returns from Buffalo were a 36-10 loss.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
