The Baltimore Ravens are dealing with a nightmare situation at quarterback. The team is playing on Thursday night this week, and with just barely 48 hours to go until kickoff, the Ravens still have no idea who their starting quarterback will be against the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

One possible option could be Kedon Slovis, who was added to Baltimore's roster on Tuesday after being signed off the Packers' practice squad, according to the Ringer. This signing should give you an idea of just how desperate the Ravens are at the quarterback position this week: Slovis has never started a game in his NFL career, but he might be forced to start this week. If that happens, he'll be taking the field with only two practices under his belt in Baltimore. 

The Ravens likely wanted to bring in someone familiar with the coaching staff, which would explain their decision to add Slovis. Ravens' QB coach Israel Woolfork held the same job in Arizona last season during a year where Slovis was on the roster, so the two are familiar with each other. 

The 2024 undrafted rookie has only thrown two passes in his career and both of those were while he was working mop-up duty for the Cardinals last season. 

The Ravens also brought in 2024 UFL MVP Adrian Martinez for a workout, according to The Athletic. The 26-year-old has had stints with both the 49ers and Jets in his career, but he's only played in one game ever and that came last season for San Francisco. As of right now, Martinez hasn't been signed. 

Breaking down the Ravens' QB situation

If you're wondering how the Ravens got to a point where they might have to start a player who's only thrown two career passes, it's because their quarterback room took a beating on Sunday in Baltimore's 36-10 loss to Buffalo. 

Lamar Jackson is headed for injured reserve after suffering a thumb injury on Baltimore's first offensive play of the game. His backup, Tyler Huntley, is also out after injuring his toe against Buffalo. Undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano played the majority of the game for the Ravens on Sunday, but he's dealing with an ankle injury and Ravens' coach Jesse Minter isn't sure what his availability is going to be with Baltimore playing on a short week. 

"To Joe's credit, he's kind of fighting through a couple things he's dealing with, but expect him to have a chance to play on Thursday," Minter said after the team's Monday walkthrough practice. 

If Fagnano is healthy enough to play, then he'll be the starter. The undrafted rookie out of UConn impressed the coaching staff in training camp and ended up winning a spot on the roster. After being forced into action against the Bills, he went just 10-of-21 for 91 yards with an interception, but that was after a week where he took zero first-team snaps (Third-string quarterbacks never get any first-team reps during the season). If Fagnano starts this week, Ravens offensive coordinator Declan Doyle will create a game plan more tailored to his rookie QB. 

If Fagnano can't go, Baltimore will roll with either Slovis or Austin Reed. The Ravens signed Reed to their practice squad on Monday and he's somewhat familiar with the offense because he spent part of training camp and the preseason in Baltimore before being released in late August. Reed played in all three of Baltimore's preseason games this year and he ended up finishing 6 of 12 for 59 yards with one touchdown and one interception along with one touchdown run. 

Reed, who entered the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2024, has never thrown a pass in a regular-season game. 

On Slovis' end, since he was signed off another team's practice squad, that means he has a guaranteed spot on the Ravens' 53-man roster this week. If Fagnano plays, it wouldn't be surprising if the Ravens have three active quarterbacks this week as insurance for the rookie's injured ankle. 

Right now, the Ravens only have three options at quarterback this week and they're all players who went undrafted. There was some speculation that the Ravens might try to add Tyson Bagent in a trade, but with the Bears playing on Monday night in Seattle, they likely weren't open to trading their backup QB since they needed him for the game. With the Ravens playing on Thursday night week, they needed to add someone quickly, and although they didn't get a trade done, they did end up settling on Reed and Slovis. 

The Ravens could still add another quarterback before Thursday, but if they don't, they'll have to roll with Fagnano, Reed or Slovis, three guys who have appeared in three career NFL games combined.