The Ravens' quarterback situation went from disappointing to dire to destitute in a hurry Sunday. In his return from an ankle injury that cost him three games, Lamar Jackson suffered a thumb injury that will require potentially season-ending surgery on Baltimore's first offensive play, and backup Tyler Huntley left shortly thereafter with a toe injury.

That left the Ravens with emergency third quarterback Joe Fagnano, an undrafted rookie. He went 10-for-21 for 91 yards and an interception, looking very much like an undrafted rookie, as the Ravens went down quietly, 36-10, against the Bills. What looked like a chance to turn the season around now looks like a game that could end Baltimore's season, for all intents and purposes. The Ravens are 4-4 and have lost three straight. Monday, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Huntley will miss extended time with turf toe, a bothersome injury that can last for weeks.

The Ravens have little time to wallow. They play the Jaguars on Thursday night. Currently, Baltimore has one available quarterback on its active roster (Fagnano), and even he was in discomfort late after taking several big hits. The Ravens don't have another quarterback on their active roster or practice squad; Skylar Thompson is on IR.

So where does Baltimore go from here at the position? There are many factors to consider.

Why the Ravens should trade for a quarterback

Regardless of whether the Ravens can continue to contend or not — and it's very much looking like the latter — they owe it to all parties involved to get a quarterback.

They owe it to the rest of the team, which is still fighting. Baltimore is 4-4, which isn't good, but isn't completely out of it. It's not as if the team is dead in the water, just trying to finish out a completely lost season. There's still Derrick Henry and Zay Flowers on offense and plenty of stars on defense. If there's any hope Jackson can return on the sooner end of the recovery spectrum, Baltimore's players deserve a chance to keep their season afloat.

They owe it to coach Jesse Minter and offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, the latter of whom has been excellent this year. Forcing Minter, a first-year head coach, to resort to an undrafted rookie free agent would be extremely difficult. Since 2000, only one team with a rookie head coach has started an undrafted rookie quarterback in multiple games: the Jets with Brady Cook last year. The Ravens do not want to resemble the Jets whatsoever. 

They owe it to Fagnano, too. He is a really nice story, someone who started his college career as a walk-on at FCS program Maine and finished it with a superb seventh-year senior season at UConn. He earned a spot on the roster with a stellar showing at rookie tryouts, then throughout the early offseason, and then in training camp and the preseason. But to stick him with an extended starting role would be unfair to him, just as it would be for Minter and Doyle.

And the bottom line is the Ravens have to add someone. They can't have one quarterback on the active roster. Austin Reed makes sense as a temporary solution to join Fagnano, as he was at least with the team this offseason, but he has never taken an NFL snap.

Unfortunately, it's not like capable quarterbacks grow on trees. There's a shortage of passable starting quarterbacks, much less backups or backups to backups. But that doesn't mean it would be impossible to find one.

Rumored trade targets

Rapoport said he'd expect the Ravens to consider quarterback trades. Two names he floated were Bears backup Tyson Bagent and Cardinals recently benched starter Jacoby Brissett.

Bagent, 26, makes sense for a few reasons. First and foremost, he was with Doyle in Chicago last year. Second, it's unclear whether he's even Caleb Williams' primary backup right now. He performed decently in a win over the Jets earlier this year but struggled badly in a loss to the Packers the following week. Overall, he has zero passing touchdowns and three interceptions in three games (two starts) this year. 

Case Keenum, on the other hand, played well in his lone start, a win over the Eagles. He got the nod after Bagent had missed much of the week of practice with a concussion, though Bagent returned to primary backup thereafter.

The Bears clearly value Bagent. They gave him a multi-year extension last season. He has shown promise in extremely small sample sizes. He has some creation ability and athleticism, which are helpful in Doyle's offense. All of that also means he wouldn't be cheap, either. There's little reason for Chicago, in a win-now season, to part with Bagent. What if the Bears need a spot start from a backup late in the year? Maybe Baltimore could sweeten the deal by sending a depth piece of their own to Chicago in the deal.

The Ravens must determine how much they want to invest in saving the next few weeks. Bagent would be on the pricier end, and it's not as if his performance this season has inspired much confidence. If Baltimore believes he could eke out a couple of wins, though? Maybe it's worth it.

Brissett has been the Cardinals' de facto bridge starter this year, but he may have lost that position Sunday, when he was benched. In his place, Gardner Minshew threw for three touchdowns in Arizona's stunning 33-30 overtime comeback win over the Cowboys. Mike LaFleur did not commit to Minshew being the starter going forward, but it'd be hard to imagine he's not.

That will be especially true if the Ravens come knocking regarding Brissett. Over the past two seasons, out of 30 quarterbacks, Brissett ranks ...

• 28th in net yards per attempt
• 24th in EPA per dropback
• 22nd in touchdown-to-interception ratio

He is exactly what he has been during his entire career: a low-level starter or high-level backup who has gotten an opportunity to be the starter only when the need arises.

But the need is there for Baltimore, and perhaps Arizona feels the opposite. Minshew is pretty similar in terms of overall player archetype, and the Cardinals also have rookie Carson Beck. If Arizona feels OK with Minshew and Beck, and it can get a solid draft-capital return for Brissett, it could make sense to do so, especially at this point in the Cardinals' long-term timeline.

Other options?

There are some other names that could be considered, though Bagent and Brissett stand out as more natural/sensical picks. If Baltimore goes elsewhere, though, here are a few names worth mentioning. View this as throwing names at a wall and seeing what sticks.

• Anthony Richardson Jr. requested a trade from the Colts earlier this year. He hasn't gotten one, but the Colts are blowing it up this trade deadline, and even a late-round pick swap could be attractive for Indianapolis. A Richardson-Henry backfield certainly carries a lot of downhill running heft.
• Spencer Rattler did some good things (and some not-so-good things) as a starter for the Saints before Tyler Shough took over in the Big Easy.
• Jalen Milroe and Joe Milton are two other mobile quarterbacks buried on depth charts. Milroe seems less likely to move — the Seahawks could want to develop him as a potential successor to Drew Lock as Sam Darnold's backup — but Milton has always been a mystery wrapped in an enigma. He has a rocket arm, legit mobility and wild athleticism. He'd be frustrating at many times but potentially fun at others.
• There are always practice squad options such as old friend Josh Johnson. A move on this level could be possible just to have a second available quarterback this week.

Why to not expect Mac Jones

In the coming days, you'll likely hear Mac Jones' name bandied about in connection to Baltimore.

It doesn't seem particularly realistic. Kyle Shanahan has said many times he wants to keep Jones, and the 49ers, like the Bears, have legitimate Super Bowl aspirations right here, right now. If the 49ers needed a spot start — or even just a few series — from Jones to win a game, it would be worth it. Unlike the Bears, though, the 49ers don't have a second legit backup. Kurtis Rourke has never played an NFL snap.

The Ravens would likely need to blow away the 49ers to have any shot at Jones, and that simply hasn't been Baltimore GM Eric DeCosta's M.O. Instead, Bagent and Brissett seem like top options, with a flyer on a younger, potentially intriguing player also a legitimate route for the Ravens to take.