What a difference a few short weeks make in the National Football League.
Take a look at the Arizona Cardinals quarterback room in training camp: Jacoby Brissett, seasoned veteran Gardner Minshew, third-round rookie Carson Beck, and 2025 holdover Kedon Slovis.
RELATED: VETERAN QB JOSH JOHNSON SIGNED
Take that same position group and view it today: Beck. In the past two days, Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort has signed journeyman and free agent Josh Johnson, and has now claimed Joey Aguilar off the practice
squad of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Apparently, Cardinals fans will get what they have been asking for since the 31-7 beating the team took from the Seattle Seahawks in Week 2. Beck seems the likely starter after Minshew is feared to have suffered a torn UCL in his throwing arm.
Minshew injured his arm before the half, but continued to play. Currently, he is undergoing tests, so we will see.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals signed 40-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson to the QB room, and today have claimed QB Joey Aguilar off the practice squad of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Just last week, Arizona shipped off their starting quarterback, Brissett, to the Baltimore Ravens for a 2027 fourth-round draft pick plus a 2028 seventh-round selection. Along with Brissett, the Cardinals gave up a 2027 fifth-round pick.
Brissett was benched because of poor play, and the fact that the offense was stagnant. Minshew orchestrated two late comebacks in the same game, a 33-30 win over the Dallas Cowboys. Two days later, Brissett was traded.
Given the Minshew news, perhaps the Arizona front office moved a little too early on that decision.
The Cardinals were already down to two signalcallers before the Minshew injury. So, on Monday, GM Monti Ossenfort signed Johnson, who entered the league in 2009 and is now on his 19th NFL team. He has multiple stints with the San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals, and the Ravens. His last contract was with the Bengals on a one-year $1.5 million deal.
He played for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the second version of the UFL in 2012. He was also signed to play with the San Diego Fleet of the AAF in 2019, but that league folded before he saw any game time. He was also signed by the Los Angeles Wildcats of the XFL in 2020, but COVID hit and all games were cancelled.
Ossenfort was seeking a young arm to become QB3. Aguilar fits that bill at age 25.
Aguilar (6’-3”, 229 pounds) went undrafted this past April in the NFL Draft out of Tennessee. Out of Freedom High School in Oakley, California, he went to the City College of San Francisco for two seasons, then transferred to Diablo Valley for the 2021 and 2022 seasons. For his junior year, he committed to Appalachian State and was finally playing D-1 football.
In 2023, he was named the starter and played in all 14 games with 293 completions on 460 attempts for 3,757 yards, a 63.7% completion rate, and 33 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. His yardage numbers and total TDs set school single-season records. He was named the “Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year” and voted Second Team All-Sun Belt.
The following year, he again started all 14 games and threw for 3,003 yards on 218 completions with 390 attempts and a 55.9% completion rate. His TD total was 23, while he threw a conference-high 14 picks. After his second season, Aguilar set numerous school passing records.
He had one year of eligibility remaining and transferred to UCLA, but then changed his mind and enrolled at the University of Tennessee to get a taste of SEC football.
Aguilar won the starting QB job and played in all 13 games. He threw for 3,565 yards on 272 completions in 404 attempts. He threw 24 touchdowns against just 10 interceptions and a 67.3% completion rate.
He is also a good runner. His career totals with App State and Tennessee include 211 attempts for 553 yards, with nine TDs and an average of 2.6 yards per carry.
After going undrafted, he signed with Jacksonville but was a final-day cut. After clearing waivers, he was signed to the Jags’ practice squad.
Ossenfort had his pick of available quarterbacks. The Minnesota Vikings are actively seeking a quarterback as of Tuesday morning.
Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur has yet to name a starting quarterback for Sunday’s home game against the Los Angeles Rams.
