Ravens Place Skylar Thompson on Injured Reserve, Sign UFL Record-Setter Austin Reed
By Brian Hradsky | Maryland Sports Blog
The Baltimore Ravens made a change to their quarterback room Wednesday, placing veteran quarterback Skylar Thompson on injured reserve and signing former Dallas Renegades quarterback Austin Reed.
Baltimore officially announced the transactions Wednesday morning. Thompson had missed practice Sunday and Tuesday before being moved to injured reserve. The Ravens have not announced the specific nature or severity of Thompson’s injury.
The move leaves Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley as Baltimore’s established top two quarterbacks, while Reed joins undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano in the developmental portion of the quarterback room.
Reed is not simply an extra training camp arm. The 26-year-old arrives in Baltimore after putting together one of the most productive passing seasons in the brief history of the United Football League.
Thompson’s Ravens opportunity interrupted by injury
Baltimore signed Thompson on May 4 to add NFL experience behind Jackson and Huntley.
A seventh-round selection of the Miami Dolphins in the 2022 NFL Draft, Thompson appeared in 10 regular-season games and made three starts for Miami. He completed 58.7% of his NFL passes for 721 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions during his time with the Dolphins. He also started Miami’s AFC Wild Card game against the Buffalo Bills following the 2022 season.
Thompson later joined the Pittsburgh Steelers, where an injury also interrupted his opportunity. He landed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury during the 2025 season and did not appear in a regular-season game for Pittsburgh.
Baltimore brought Thompson in this spring to compete for depth behind Jackson and Huntley. However, his absence from multiple recent practices provided the first indication something was wrong.
The Ravens made the move official Wednesday.
Because Thompson was placed on injured reserve well before the final roster reduction, the transaction is particularly significant. NFL rules allow teams to designate as many as two players for future return when they are moved to an applicable reserve list during the business day of the final roster reduction. Players placed on injured reserve earlier in training camp generally cannot return to the same team’s active roster during that season.
Barring another transaction permitted under NFL rules, Thompson’s first season in Baltimore therefore appears to be over before it began.
Who is Austin Reed?
Baltimore responded by signing one of the UFL’s most productive quarterbacks.
Reed played for the Dallas Renegades in 2026, winning the starting job despite entering camp in a competition with accomplished spring-football quarterback Luis Perez.
Reed proceeded to throw for 1,923 yards, 21 touchdowns and nine interceptions, finishing second in the UFL in passing yards while establishing a UFL single-season record with 21 touchdown passes. Dallas went 4-6 in games Reed started.
His season started with an immediate statement.
Against the Houston Gamblers in Week 1, Reed completed 65% of his passes for 376 yards and three touchdowns, producing a 120.4 passer rating while setting the UFL’s single-game passing-yardage record.
That performance helped validate Dallas coach Rick Neuheisel’s decision to give Reed the starting job.
Reed continued producing throughout the season and ultimately finished with the league’s touchdown passing record.
That production likely made him one of the more attractive quarterbacks available to NFL teams looking for late-training-camp depth.
Reed has already spent time in the NFL
The Ravens will not be Reed’s first experience with an NFL organization.
After going undrafted in 2024, Reed signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent. He spent the 2024 season on Chicago’s practice squad and later signed a reserve/future contract with the Bears in January 2025.
Across five preseason appearances for Chicago, Reed completed 23 of 33 passes for 230 yards and one touchdown.
During the 2024 preseason alone, Reed completed 12 of 16 passes for 123 yards, one touchdown and a 117.4 passer rating.
Chicago ultimately waived Reed in August 2025.
Instead of disappearing from the professional football landscape, Reed went to the UFL and dramatically improved his résumé.
Now he gets another NFL opportunity in Baltimore.
Reed was a prolific college passer
Reed’s history of putting up big passing numbers started long before his UFL season.
His college career took an unusual path.
Reed initially enrolled at Southern Illinois in 2018, where he redshirted without appearing in a game. He then transferred to Division II West Florida.
That move changed his career.
Reed helped West Florida win the Division II national championship in 2019. His Division II career eventually ended with 78 touchdown passes against only 20 interceptions in 26 games.
He eventually transferred to Western Kentucky, where he became one of the nation’s most productive quarterbacks.
During the 2022 season, Reed threw for 4,746 yards, leading the entire Football Bowl Subdivision in passing yards.
That season earned Reed Conference USA Newcomer of the Year honors.
Across his Western Kentucky career, Reed completed 678 passes on 1,073 attempts for 8,084 yards and 71 touchdowns. He left the program ranked second in school history in touchdown passes and fourth in passing yards.
Those are significant numbers at a school that has become known for prolific passing offenses.
Reed gives Baltimore an intriguing developmental quarterback
There is no quarterback controversy in Baltimore.
Jackson remains one of the NFL’s premier players, while Huntley gives the Ravens an experienced backup who already knows the organization and offense.
The intrigue surrounds what happens behind them.
With Thompson now on injured reserve, Reed suddenly has an opportunity to make an impression during the remainder of training camp and the preseason.
His résumé makes the situation worth watching.
Reed has produced at virtually every level where he has received extended playing time. He won a Division II national championship, led the FBS in passing yards, developed for two seasons with an NFL organization and then broke UFL passing records.
That does not guarantee NFL success. The jump from the UFL to an NFL regular-season roster remains significant.
However, there are far less accomplished quarterbacks arriving in NFL training camps during August.
Baltimore now gets an opportunity to evaluate Reed in its system.
MSB Take
This is an unfortunate development for Thompson, especially after Baltimore brought him in specifically to provide veteran depth.
The undisclosed nature of the injury leaves questions about exactly what happened, but placing Thompson on injured reserve this early indicates it was significant enough for the Ravens to make a roster move rather than simply allowing him to miss several practices.
Reed is a fascinating replacement.
The Ravens did not simply grab an available quarterback with NFL camp experience. They signed a player who just threw 21 touchdowns in a 10-game UFL season and broke the league’s single-game passing record with 376 yards.
Baltimore already knows what it has with Jackson and Huntley.
Reed now becomes one of the more interesting players to watch toward the bottom of the Ravens’ roster. His combination of college production, NFL developmental experience and recent UFL success gives him a legitimate résumé.
For a player who went undrafted two years ago, spent time on a practice squad and then went to spring football, Reed has earned another opportunity.
Now he gets it with the Baltimore Ravens.
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