The Baltimore Ravens are buying into the Joe Fagnano experiment. Against all odds, the undrafted rookie made the 53-man roster as the team’s QB3.
It’s a fantastic story. Fagnano wasn’t initially signed as an undrafted free agent coming out of the 2026 NFL Draft. He was brought in for a tryout, and then signed a non-guaranteed contract. It really wasn’t until preseason that Fagnano made a name for himself either.
Everything was truly stacked against him this summer.
And the story gets even better, too. On Wednesday, Eric DeCosta revealed that he received trade offers for Fagnano. But instead of trading him, Baltimore opted to bet on him.
“I honestly had trade offers for [Fagnano],” DeCosta said. “Maybe it’s just the fact that people want to trade for him, I’m like, ‘Maybe we should just keep him’ … We got a good young quarterback that we think has a chance. Coaches are excited about him, players are excited about him, we’ll just see what happens.”
That’s high praise.
Baltimore Ravens are excited for Joe Fagnano's future
Usually, when you're a backup who isn’t going to see the field, or may not even make the roster, Eric DeCosta may bite on trade offers. He loves his draft picks, and didn’t waste time making deals on cutdown weekend, netting late-round picks for C.J. Okoye and Diego Pounds.
Joe Fagnano was a different case.
Fagnano was one of the best, if not the best, quarterbacks in the NFL throughout preseason action. He was surgical through the air, completing 56-of-75 passes for 509 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also added another touchdown on the ground.
Fagnano really only made one big mistake all preseason. In the second quarter of an otherwise sparkling debut against the Philadelphia Eagles, he threw an interception in the end zone on a reckless cross-body pass.
He never made any mistakes like that again, though.
When you have a quarterback that’s not only playing as well as Fagnano was, but making the adjustments he did, you can’t really risk losing that guy on waivers.
While he’s Baltimore’s QB3 and probably won’t take a snap in 2026, quarterback is obviously a critical position. Injuries are an unfortunate reality in this sport, and having extra depth that you know has talent can’t be taken lightly. And who knows, maybe Fagnano can develop into something special down the line, too.
Of course, the regular season is a different animal. There have been plenty of preseason darlings across NFL history who have fallen flat when it’s time to play in the games that actually matter. If Fagnano can continue this impressive stretch, though, great things could be in store.
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