With Jacoby Brissett on the way, Ravens still believe they can make a run

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The Ravens’ performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars was “not acceptable,” coach Jesse Minter said, but help is on its way.

There was a lot of frustration in the locker room after their 33-10 loss Thursday night, but players weren’t ready to be counted out. As veterans addressed their hope for the future, several players invoked Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett’s name.

The Ravens are reportedly making a trade for Brissett, although Minter wouldn’t confirm the news in his postgame media conference.

“It’s a hard situation, though, but I know Brissett, and I know what he’s capable of doing,” defensive end Calais Campbell said. “I know that, even though we haven’t played up to our standard, especially on defense, I know that there’s better ball ahead of us.”

This is the Ravens’ fourth straight loss, and things aren’t looking up with two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson on injured reserve and backup Tyler Huntley out for the season. The Ravens need “all hands on deck,” running back Derrick Henry said, and Brissett can “come in and help us.”

The Ravens commended Joe Fagnano for doing what he could. The undrafted rookie quarterback was thrust into his first NFL action after Jackson and Huntley were hurt Sunday at Buffalo, and then he had a short week to prepare for his first start.

Fagnano said he was still dealing with an ankle injury from the week before, but he also admitted he needed to play better. He finished with a quarterback rating of 22.7 (a perfect rating is 158.3) after completing 10 of 18 passes for 60 yards and two interceptions.

“I am not going to sit up here and make excuses,” Fagnano said. “I have to play better.”

A 10-year veteran, Brissett has a lot more experience to draw on. The Ravens stuck almost exclusively to the run game with Fagnano, who had no completions of more than 10 air yards. Brissett averages five passes of 10 air yards or more per game this season.

“I think that’ll bode well for us,” left tackle Ronnie Stanley said. “But there’s a lot of things that we need to fix on our end. I don’t think anyone can just come in and fix all the problems.”

Many of the Ravens’ issues are independent of the quarterback, which is why certain parts of the locker room were so frustrated despite the very predictable loss. That was evident in right tackle Roger Rosengarten’s quick departure, Henry’s terse media scrum and cornerback Marlon Humphrey’s loss of words.

The offensive line was again one of the most beleaguered position groups.

It features two first-round picks, two second-round picks and a fourth-round pick, but it played poorly enough to get line coach Dwayne Ledford’s blood boiling. In a sideline conversation caught on camera, Ledford spiked a tablet into the ground.

“He was fired up about the little things we messed up,” right guard Vega Ioane said. “He was doing the right thing. Sometimes it’s the right thing to be a little aggressive like that. That’s what everybody needs. With the way the game went, it’s what we needed.”

The Ravens struggled with penalties before the play again. They committed five penalties for 30 yards on offense. Tight end Mark Andrews and Stanley, among the most veteran players on the team, were responsible for two of them.

“It’s a ninth game, so there’s no ‘we haven’t done this, we haven’t done that or whatever. We’ve got a new guy in there [at quarterback],’” Minter said. “He’s been here all season, been here all training camp. So the presnap penalties are unacceptable.”

Meanwhile, the defense gave up 319 yards and 33 points. It was missing starting cornerback Nate Wiggins and starting safety Jaylinn Hawkins, but the 242 passing yards allowed still rankled Minter.

“I take a lot of pride in the secondary, and it doesn’t look anything ... we haven’t gotten the results that we’re after, so we just have to go back to work,” Minter said.

The Ravens have a losing record, are in last place in the AFC North and have just a 5% chance of making the postseason according to The New York Times playoff predictor.

Still, there is belief in the locker room.

Campbell, 40, who is eyeing retirement, came here to win. With the situation as dire as it is, he could ask for a trade or to be released so he can join a contender. Henry could also be a trade candidate. Neither entertained those conversations.

“I like Baltimore a lot,” Campbell said. “You know, I still believe in this team. I haven’t given up on this team.”