Deadline week: the Ravens found a quarterback, the Bears found a tackle, the Colts wait
Baltimore is finalizing a trade for Jacoby Brissett, Chicago's new defensive tackle dominated his debut, and Jonathan Taylor's future resolves by Tuesday at 4 p.m.
- The Ravens are finalizing a trade for Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett, with the Cardinals restructuring his contract by converting $2.7 million of his salary into a signing bonus. m:…8057
- The Cardinals elevated rookie Carson Beck to the QB2 position after the Brissett trade, and the trade is expected to be finalized in the next day or two. m:…7830
- Jeffery Simmons, acquired by the Bears in a trade with the Tennessee Titans on October 30, 2026, played 87% of defensive snaps in his debut and recorded six tackles, one sack, two tackles-for-loss and one pass breakup. m:…0648
- The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m., and a resolution regarding Jonathan Taylor's status with the Colts will occur by then. m:…7084
Baltimore's answer at quarterback
The Ravens are finalizing a trade for Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett. Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley are out with long-term injuries, and the team is preparing to start undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano, who will make his first NFL start against the Jaguars. The Ravens are 10-point underdogs in that game. m:…8057
The mechanics of the deal are already visible. The Cardinals restructured Brissett's contract, converting $2.7 million of his salary into a signing bonus, and the trade is expected to be finalized in the next day or two. Brissett is slated to make his Ravens debut in Week 10 against the Chargers, and he will reunite with Ravens coach Israel Woolfork. m:…8057 m:…7830
The team's own roundup frames the move as a signal that the Ravens are not giving up on the playoffs. That is the bet behind the trade: a veteran backup, acquired mid-season, to keep a season alive while the starters recover. On the other side of the deal, the Cardinals elevated rookie Carson Beck to the QB2 position. Beck has not appeared in a regular-season game for the Cardinals, and Gardner Minshew is the current starting quarterback. m:…8057 m:…7830
Beck's resume so far is a single preseason data point: he completed 15 of 19 passes for 188 yards and a touchdown in the Hall of Fame game, then missed the remainder of the preseason due to a rib injury. Arizona traded its veteran backup and elevated a rookie who has never played a regular-season snap to the QB2 spot, behind Gardner Minshew. m:…7830
Chicago's instant return
The Bears' deadline deal has already paid off on the field. Chicago acquired defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons in a trade with the Tennessee Titans on October 30, 2026, and in his debut Simmons played 87% of defensive snaps, recording six tackles, one sack, two tackles-for-loss and one pass breakup. The coaching staff did not need to scale back the defensive game plan for him. m:…0648
Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen says Simmons's work ethic and performance force teammates to raise their own level of play. The supporting numbers back up the praise: Montez Sweat registered his third sack of the season in the same game, and James Lynch intercepted a pass deflected by Austin Booker and returned it 16 yards. A mid-season trade is usually a gamble on fit; Simmons fit on the first snap. m:…0648
Indianapolis waits
The week's unresolved deal belongs to Indianapolis. Jonathan Taylor is focusing on the Colts' upcoming Week 9 game against the Dallas Cowboys, and he has acknowledged that trade rumors are unavoidable. The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m., and a resolution regarding Taylor's status with the Colts will occur by then. m:…7084
Taylor's last game gives the rumors their fuel and their context. He rushed eight times for 23 yards in the Colts' 42-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, a game in which the Colts were down 28-0 at halftime. His diminished usage in that game was due to the game score, not trade speculation, which cuts both ways: it explains the low numbers, and it leaves the question of his future exactly where it was. m:…7084
Deadline week, then, is really three different markets. Baltimore bought insurance at quarterback. Chicago bought a defensive tackle who produced immediately. Indianapolis has not decided whether to sell. By Tuesday at 4 p.m., all three stories will have their endings. m:…8057 m:…0648 m:…7084
What is still unresolved
- Whether the Brissett trade is finalized on the expected timeline, and when he is available to play.
- Whether Joe Fagnano starts again if Brissett is not ready for Week 10.
- Whether Jonathan Taylor stays with the Colts or is traded by the Tuesday 4 p.m. deadline.
- Whether Simmons's debut production holds up over a full stretch of games in Chicago.
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