Hello football friends, and welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

There is football on tonight, but I can't promise the Ravens will give us anything actually resembling football. 

After losing Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley to injury, the Ravens will be going into tonight's game with three quarterbacks who have zero career starts: Joe Fagnano, Kedon Slovis, Austin Reed. I know what you're thinking, and no, I didn't make up any of those names. Fagnano, who is an undrafted rookie, will be the Ravens' starting QB tonight. Obviously, the biggest question with him has nothing to do with football; it's HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE YOUR NAME? And the good news for us is that he actually answered that question this week. You can see it here. 

We'll be making picks in that game, plus we'll be taking a look at the big QB trade that the Ravens are about to make. Oh, and to keep up with our QB theme, we'll also be ranking every quarterback in the NFL. 

As always, here's your reminder to tell all of your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, just click here. Let's get to the rundown. 

1. QB chaos: Four teams will likely have a new starter this week, plus Jacoby Brissett heads to Baltimore

One reason the NFL is the most unpredictable sports league on the planet is because you can't even predict what's going to happen from day to day. Over the past 24 hours alone, we have seen two different teams announce they'll have a different starting QB this week, one team announce it will probably have a different QB and one team announce it might have a new QB. Plus, there's another team that's finalizing a trade for a QB. 

Let's go over everything that happened, starting with the proposed trade: 

• Jacoby Brissett heads to Baltimore. With Lamar Jackson out for at least a month and Tyler Huntley done for the year, the Ravens decided to add another quarterback. Baltimore is finalizing a deal with Arizona that will send Brissett to the Ravens. Now, here's the bizarre part: The trade isn't expected to be done until this weekend, so Brissett won't be able to play for the Ravens tonight. That also means we don't know yet what the compensation will be in the deal. The only thing we do know is that Brissett will be a Raven at some point in the next 48 hours and that his first start with the team will likely come in Week 11 against the Chargers. Brissett has a 3-5 record with the Cardinals this year, and one of those wins actually came against the Chargers in Week 1. 
• Eagles set to start Joe Milton against the Giants. Tanner McKee has started the past two games for Philadelphia, and he hasn't been very effective, so he's being sent to the bench in favor of Milton. At this point, the Eagles don't really have anything to lose, so it makes sense for them to give Milton a shot. Milton is athletic, and he has a rocket arm. However, he's a raw talent, and he's never started a game in his career. 
• Drew Lock will be starting for the Seahawks. Sam Darnold won't be able to play this week due to a quad injury, according to Mike Macdonald. That now sets the stage for Drew Lock to get his second start of the season, assuming he's healthy enough to play. Lock wasn't active in Week 7 or Week 8 because he was dealing with an elbow injury, so this is going to be interesting to watch. If Lock can't go for some reason, the Seahawks could turn to Jalen Milroe. If Lock does start, he'll get to face a familiar opponent. He's only started one game this year, and that came in a Week 2 win over a Cardinals team that the Seahawks will once again be facing on Sunday.
• Deshaun Watson might miss Week 9. The Browns QB has been placed in concussion protocol, and if he doesn't get cleared by the weekend, Shedeur Sanders will get the start against the Saints. Sanders would probably love to get some revenge on New Orleans, a team that passed on him in the 2025 draft so it could take Tyler Shough instead. Sanders started seven games for the Browns last season, but he has only thrown three passes this year after losing a QB battle against Watson in training camp. 
• Keep an eye on the situation in Minnesota. Kyler Murray is dealing with a hamstring injury, and there's a very real chance he could miss this week's game against the Bills. According to ESPN, Carson Wentz is "trending toward" being the starter for the Monday night game, so that will be a situation to keep an eye on. 

It's already been a wild week, and it could get even crazier over the next few days with the trade deadline coming up on Nov. 10. 

2. Thursday night preview: Picks and best bets for Jaguars at Ravens

Five days ago, this looked like it was going to be a huge AFC showdown, but then Lamar Jackson went down with an injury that could end up keeping him out for the rest of the year. The Ravens then turned the offense over to Huntley, but he also got injured. 

So who do the Ravens have left? The Jacoby Brissett deal won't be finalized until after this game, so Baltimore will be rolling with Joe Fagnano. The undrafted rookie out of UConn got to play nearly 2.5 quarters against the Bills, and he wasn't able to do much of anything against a bad Buffalo defense. And unfortunately for Fagnano, things aren't going to get any easier tonight. 

Here's one reason why each team should be feeling confident going into the game: 

• Why the Jaguars can win: In their past two games, the Ravens have faced two of the AFC's top quarterbacks — Josh Allen and Joe Burrow — and they couldn't stop either guy. Trevor Lawrence has been on fire over the past few weeks, and if he can get the offense off to a hot start, it's hard to imagine the Ravens keeping up. The Jags defense has struggled to stop the pass this year, but that shouldn't be an issue here. If they can put some pressure on Fagnano, that could lead to an interception or two. The Jags are 4-0 this season when their defense forces multiple turnovers, and this feels like a game where that could happen. 
• Why the Ravens can win: It's not going to be easy, but the Ravens HAVE to get their rushing attack going. The Ravens are 4-0 this year when they rush for at least 110 yards, but the problem is that no one has been able to hit that number against the Jags in almost two years. The Jags have the NFL's best run defense, and no running back has topped 75 yards on them all season. If anyone can break through the Jags' defense, it's Derrick Henry, who has averaged 127.7 yards per game on the ground in his past six meetings with the Jags. If Henry gets going, it will take some serious pressure off Fagnano, and that could open the door for the rookie to make some big plays against a Jacksonville defense that has surrendered the fourth-most passing yards per game this year. 

If you're thinking about betting on the game, here are a couple of props. 

• ONE RECEIVING PROP I LIKE: Justice Hill OVER 2.5 receptions (-114 at DraftKings): After Fagnano entered the game on Sunday, Hill ended up catching a total of four passes. With Fagnano making his first career start, he'll likely want to play it safe in the passing game, and that should mean we see a decent amount of check downs to Hill, which should lead to at least three receptions. 
• ONE KICKING PROP I LIKE: Jake Moody OVER 4.5 points (-123 at DraftKings): The Ravens placed Tyler Loop on injured reserve this week, so Moody will be making his debut in Baltimore. This is about the lowest over/under point total you'll ever see for a kicker, which means the oddsmakers have zero faith in the Ravens offense to score points tonight. I don't think the Ravens will light up the scoreboard, but I do have some faith that Moody will score points for two reasons: The Ravens have some great weapons like Derrick Henry and Zay Flowers, plus the game plan will be tailored around Fagnano's strengths. Baltimore's offense should look a lot better than it did Sunday. 

If you're wondering how my props are doing this year, I'm 11-21 (5-11 on kicker props and 6-10 on all other props). It's gotten ugly. I clearly need to re-evaluate my entire process. I think what I'm trying to say here is that you should still be fading me until further notice. As a matter of fact, I'm going to fade myself. 

And now, it's time for some picks. 

PICKS FOR 'TNF'

Jared Dubin's pick: Jaguars 27-6 over Ravens
John Breech's pick: Jaguars 30-13 over Ravens
Jordan Dajani's pick: Jaguars 28-13 over Ravens
Tyler Sullivan's pick: Jaguars 28-16 over Ravens
Prisco's pick: Jaguars 27-16 over Ravens

We are all taking the Jaguars in a blowout. All of us picked the Seahawks over the Bears on Monday, and we saw how that worked out for Seattle, so I might have to put the Jags on upset alert here. 

If you want to know which way all of our experts are leaning, you can check that out on our CBSSports.com picks page. 

3. NFL Week 9 picks: Packers pull off upset in New England, Bengals win shootout in Spain

Welcome to the part of the newsletter where we hand out picks. We have five NFL writers — Pete Prisco, Jordan Dajani, Tyler Sullivan, Jared Dubin and me — handing out picks each week. If you're wondering who did the best last week, I can tell you it wasn't me. I know that, because I was the worst. I don't think I've won a week since early September. I might have to retire from making picks. 

Anyway, if you're new here, here's how things work: I'll give you one Week 9 pick from each writer and then direct you to the rest of their picks for the week. That way, if you like their pick, you can click over and check out all their Week 9 predictions; if you hate it, you can ignore the rest and move on with your life. 

• Pete Prisco — Saints (-1.5) 17-14 over Browns. From Prisco: "The Browns are playing consecutive road games after losing to the Steelers last week. The Saints are coming off a bye, so big advantage there. The Browns were bad on offense against the Steelers, which I think carries over here. The Saints will do enough to win a low-scoring game." For the rest of Prisco's Week 9 picks, be sure to click here.
• Tyler Sullivan — Bears (-6.5) 28-20 over Buccaneers. From Sullivan: "Over the past two games, Tampa Bay's passing attack has completed 7 of 14 attempts for 64 yards and one touchdown. That might be good enough to lock in two wins against NFC South rivals, but they'll need to chuck it to keep pace with Caleb Williams and keep this newly dominant defense honest. I don't believe they will be able to, which sets up Chicago to win its fourth straight game. The Bears are also 3-1 ATS at home this season." For the rest of Sullivan's Week 9 picks, be sure to click here.
• Jordan Dajani — Broncos (-2.5) 23-20 over Panthers. From Dajani: " I told you the Broncos would beat the Chiefs last week. The conversation around Bo Nix is so bizarre to me. He's not Josh Allen, obviously, but he's not worth benching either. He's not the most prolific passer in NFL history, but he's Superman when it comes to leading his team to wins in crunch time. Denver does have a great defense, which pulled off that goal-line stand vs. Kansas City, but Nix leads the NFL since 2000 with 9.1 yards per attempt when down by one score in the fourth quarter. He has 15 game-winning drives to his name, which is one shy of the most in a three-season span in NFL history. Nix hasn't even played three full seasons. It hasn't always been pretty, but Nix is pretty good in those fourth quarters." Dajani's full slate of picks will be released Friday, but you can get a preview here.
• Jared Dubin — Packers (+3) 26-20 over Patriots. From Dubin: "Green Bay's defense has been excellent for several weeks now, and with the Patriots down multiple weapons in the passing game, I think the Packers can try to make New England one-dimensional here, in a way that will limit their chances of moving the ball downfield." For the rest of Dubin's Week 9 picks, be sure to click here. 
• John Breech — Bengals (-3) 34-30 over Falcons. From me: "I'm so excited about this game that I'm going to be heading out to Madrid to attend it. The Bengals can't stop the run, and they've been one of the worst teams in the NFL at stopping opposing tight ends, so Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts could both end up having a big day. But that won't matter, because the Bengals have Joe Burrow, who will find a way to will his team to a win in a shootout." For the rest of my Week 9 picks, be sure to click here. 

For more Week 9 NFL picks, you can check out our CBSSports.com picks page here. 

4. QB power rankings: Josh Allen back on top

Every week during the NFL season, we rank all 32 starting quarterbacks, and for our first ranking in November, there's a very familiar face on top: Josh Allen.

The ranking is handled by Garrett Podell, who breaks down every possible QB stat to figure out who should be on top. Here's a short explanation from Garrett of how his QB ranking works: "These rankings are fluid and designed to tell the story of each starting quarterback's respective rise and/or fall throughout the season." 

Basically, this ranking isn't based on what any QB has done in the past; it's only based on what they've done this year.

After eight weeks of action, let's check out the top three names on the list, plus the QB who's ranked dead last: 

1. Josh Allen, Bills. He enters Week 9 leading the league in yards per pass attempt (8.7), second in the NFL in total touchdowns (20, 11 passing and 9 rushing), second in expected points added (EPA) per dropback (0.26), 10th in completion percentage (65.9%) and eighth in passer rating (101.1). The 2024 NFL MVP has led his Buffalo Bills to a 6-1 record and the No.1 seed in the AFC, and Allen is back atop our quarterback power rankings entering Week 9.
2. Jared Goff, Lions. Goff is averaging 280.6 passing yards per game (third in the NFL) with 15 passing touchdowns (tied for fifth in the NFL) and just one interception. Goff is the fourth quarterback to have those numbers through the first seven games of a season, joining Tom Brady (2015 and 2016), Alex Smith (2017) and Patrick Mahomes (2019). 
3. Brock Purdy, 49ers. He is third in the league in completion percentage (69.2%), fourth in pass yards per attempt (8.3), tied for fifth in passing touchdowns (15) and third in passer rating (110.1). Purdy is squarely in the MVP race and could get the top spot back on this list after another week or two of strong production.
...
32. Joe Fagnano, Ravens. Fagnano will be the second undrafted rookie quarterback to start a game in Ravens history, joining Anthony Brown (2022). He made his NFL debut in Week 8 after both Lamar Jackson (thumb) and Tyler Huntley (turf toe) went down on Sunday. He threw for 91 yards and an interception on 10-of-21 passing in a 36-10 defeat against the Bills.

Based on Garrett's ranking, the Ravens are not going to be a fun team to watch tonight. Anyway, Garrett ranked every starting QB in the NFL, and if you want to see his full list, you can do that here. 

5. Midseason all-rookie team: Who are the NFL's best first-year players so far?

The most frustrating thing about the NFL's 17-game season is that I'm not exactly sure when the halfway point of the year is anymore for each team, but we're going to pretend it's today. We're going to celebrate the midseason by naming our midseason all-rookie team.

Let's take a look at who the top rookies have been at each position on offense: 

QB: Jalon Daniels, Buccaneers
RB: Jeremiyah Love, Cardinals
WR: K.C. Concepcion, Browns
WR: Denzel Boston, Browns
WR: Carnell Tate, Titans
TE: Kenyon Sadiq, Jets
LT: Spencer Fano, Browns
LG: Kadyn Proctor, Dolphins
C: Jake Slaughter, Chargers
RG: Vega Ioane, Ravens
RT: Blake Miller, Lions

Based on the offensive team here, the Browns clearly deserve some credit for getting their draft right this year. They hit several home runs, especially at receiver. The most surprising name on this list is definitely Daniels. Every name on the offensive side of the ball was either a first- or second-round pick, except for Daniels, who made the Buccaneers roster as an undrafted free agent. 

Josh Edwards was in charge of putting this team together, and if you want to see who made the cut on the defensive side of the ball, we've got that here.  

6. Extra points: Jack Campbell offers update on his status

It's been a busy few days around the NFL, and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything, I put together a quick roundup for you.

• Jack Campbell slowly improving. The Lions linebacker has been in the hospital since suffering a devastating injury on Sunday, but he did offer an encouraging statement yesterday. "I'm incredibly encouraged by the progress I've made in such a short period of time. I have full movement in my lower body, and I'm continuing to make progress with movement in my upper body. I know there's still work ahead, but I remain very optimistic." If you want the full details on Campbell's update, we have that here.  
• Brandon Aiyuk to apply for reinstatement. The 49ers receiver is actually going to try to return to the NFL. Aiyuk was placed on the reserve/left team list late last season, and that's where he's been ever since. During the offseason, he claimed he wanted to make an NFL return, but he never applied for reinstatement, so that wasn't even possible. Apparently, he's now going to apply. Once that happens, the 49ers will quickly have to make a decision on whether to trade him, cut him or keep him. You can read more about Aiyuk's situation here. 
• Hall of Fame names contributor nominees for class of 2027. Ralph Hay, Robert Kraft, Virginia McCaskey, Doug Williams and John Wooten have been named the contributor nominees for the HOF's class of 2027. On Nov. 17, the Contributor Subcommittee will meet and whittle the list down to one name, and that person will automatically become a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, with the selection committee voting on his induction during Super Bowl week in February. If you want to know more about each nominee, we've got that here.