Jeff

Driskel

Rodriguez was solid in the win over the Giants in Week 9, but wasn’t involved in the offense in Week 10 against the Steelers with just two carries for four yards. Driskel will be the emergency third quarterback for Thursday’s contest.

Minutes before the team’s official inactives dropped it was announced that Robinson would be inactive due to his hamstring injury. His absence will pave the way for Austin Ekeler and Jeremy McNichols to have busier afternoons than expected, with Ekeler the likely favorite to lead the backfield in touches.

Mariota has a strained pectoral, and the 30-year-old signal-caller won’t be available for the opener against the Bucs. That means Jeff Driskel will operate as the backup QB to Jalen Daniels to begin the year.

Driskel is a former sixth-round pick who has played for seven different teams since entering the league in 2016. He’s thrown for 2,394 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in his career and has made 12 starts. Driskel could compete for the third quarterback spot on the Commanders’ roster if they opt to keep three, but would otherwise have a chance to land on the practice squad.

Given that Driskel wasn’t even on the Browns until November, it’s a bit of a surprise that he was elevated to the back-up spot over P.J. Walker. Driskel started in Week 18 when the Browns rested Flacco and completed 13-of-26 passes for 166 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in the Browns’ 31-14 loss to the Bengals. He added seven rushes for 33 yards, and mobility is certainly one of his best traits. Regardless of who back-ups up Flacco, the Browns will be in big trouble if the veteran were to get hurt.

We frankly have no idea why Driskel was signed off the Cardinals’ practice squad to start this game. Going on 31, the odds are high Driskel never starts another NFL contest.

Joe Flacco and plenty of other starters are getting the week off with Cleveland locked into the No. 5 seed. P.J. Walker will serve as Driskel’s backup. Driskel was signed from the Cardinals’ practice squad to Cleveland’s active roster less than a week ago. Expect a vanilla offense run mostly by backups to close out Cleveland’s regular season.

The mobile Driskel, who last played for the Texans in 2022, will likely serve as Arizona’s No. 3 quarterback behind Kyler Murray and Clayton Tune. Driskel, 30, has thrown 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions since entering the NFL in 2018.

Being a quarterback to get cut from the Cardinals’ 2023 roster is about as down-bad as it gets. After cutting ties with Colt McCoy earlier in the week, the Cardinals have now sent Driskel into free agency, although he could have a chance to return to the practice squad. Driskel is a dual-threat quarterback whose rushing upside was utilized by the Texans last season.

Driskel spent 2022 as the Texans’ version of Taysom Hill, splitting reps with Davis Mills over the season’s final month. With Kyler Murray (knee) questionable for the start of the year, Arizona is a good landing spot for Driskel, where he’ll compete with Colt McCoy and David Blough for the No. 2 role. Playing Driskel in a gadget role gives the Cardinals the option of replacing Murray’s production with a quarterback platoon.