Sometimes NFL teams do make the obvious moves.
The Baltimore Ravens are finalizing a trade for Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Wednesday. The deal is expected to be completed over the weekend.
Terms of the swap were not reported.
Brissett was benched during Sunday's comeback win over the Dallas Cowboys and demoted to third-string on Monday.
The benching, coupled with the Ravens' glaring need at quarterback after losing Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley to injury this week, made a swap all too obvious. Not only was the need clear, but Brissett will reunite with Ravens QB coach Israel Woolfolk, with whom he worked last season in Arizona and in Cleveland in 2022. That familiarity will help the veteran QB to jump right into the fray.
It made sense for Arizona to move on from Brissett after naming Gardner Minshew the starter and Carson Beck the backup. Eventually Beck should get some starting reps. By trading Brissett, the Cards also shed salary after reworking the QB’s deal this offseason.
The Ravens won't acquire Brissett before Thursday's game against Jacksonville, but he's expected to start when Baltimore faces the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 10 on Monday Night Football. Undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano will start on Thursday Night Football versus the Jags.
The Ravens will be Brissett's seventh franchise and mark his seventh different team in seven years. The journeyman knows how to pick up an offense and can run the operation. In Arizona, some off-target throws began to hurt the offense, and he didn't seem the best fit in Mike LaFleur's scheme, but he's a professional who can at least give the Ravens an operational distributor.
Losers of three straight heading into Thursday night, the Ravens hope Brissett's arrival can help keep them afloat in a tough playoff race. Baltimore currently sits last in the division at 4-4 and 10th in the AFC.
