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If it weren't for the gambling revelations, former Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby would enter the 2026 season as a projected day two pick in the 2027 NFL Draft. As for now, well, anything can happen. As we learned earlier this week, the National Football League will not hold a supplemental draft this year, and that means Sorsby, already ruled ineligible by the NCAA, will not play college or NFL football this season.
The supplemental draft had been his only option, after he got kicked out of the college ranks for a pattern of problematic gambling. He was found to have bet on his own team, and now one wonders if any NFL team will take a gamble on him next April. Sorsby's legal team is still fighting it, claiming that cancelling the supplemental draft is a violation of the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement).
Sorsby, of course, is not a NFL player, so it's hard to see how this specific piece of labor law applies to him. Maybe Sorsby and his legal team somehow win their court battles and find a way to get him on the field, somewhere, this fall.
That seems highly unlikely though, and it's more probable that Sorsby will effectively serve a de facto one year suspension. In order to get a NFL team to take a flier on him next year, however, he needs to make people believe his one year "suspension" is actually more a one-year "redshirt."
It's a very tall order, to say the least, but this is how we believe he can get there.
This is first and foremost; undoubtedly. Sorsby has to be considered toxic (or "radioactive") to some NFL teams right now. He's dominating offseason headlines, and for all the wrong reasons. June is the most notoriously boring month, of the entire calendar, for people whose favorite sport is football. The well traveled quarterback has given us all something to talk about, during what is traditionally a painfully boring time of year.
However, when you get to the actual season, and in to a NFL camp, almost all of them avoid big media circuses, and the added distractions that come with it. You could argue that the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys are exceptions to this rule.
The Cleveland Browns, having drafted both Johnny Manziel and Shedeur Sanders, are most certainly an exception to this rule.
To simplify it all, Sorsby must win over the court of public opinion, and his only chance to do that is to make people believe he had an addiction, and that he's recovered. As long as people believe that the mess he's in was largely his own doing, no team will likely be interested.
His tape from 2025 with Cincinnati will need to stand on its own now, and it must do some heavy lifting. Unless Sorsby finds another pro or semi-pro league to play in this year, it's a forced sabbatical for him. And on that sabbatical, he'll need to make sure he stays in tip top shape. Then it would be a matter of getting a combine invite, and impressing while he's there. Or landing some private workouts and wowing the scouts.
He has all the size, measurables and skill sets in his favor, so the potential is certainly there. However, the 2027 quarterback class is really stacked and loaded. So even if Sorsby did not have any baggage, he'd still face an uphill battle next season.
This article originally appeared on Draft Wire: Brendan Sorsby faces big challenges in order to become draft-worthy
Continue reading...
The supplemental draft had been his only option, after he got kicked out of the college ranks for a pattern of problematic gambling. He was found to have bet on his own team, and now one wonders if any NFL team will take a gamble on him next April. Sorsby's legal team is still fighting it, claiming that cancelling the supplemental draft is a violation of the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement).
Sorsby, of course, is not a NFL player, so it's hard to see how this specific piece of labor law applies to him. Maybe Sorsby and his legal team somehow win their court battles and find a way to get him on the field, somewhere, this fall.
That seems highly unlikely though, and it's more probable that Sorsby will effectively serve a de facto one year suspension. In order to get a NFL team to take a flier on him next year, however, he needs to make people believe his one year "suspension" is actually more a one-year "redshirt."
It's a very tall order, to say the least, but this is how we believe he can get there.
Off-the-Field Concern: Total Image Rehab Needed
This is first and foremost; undoubtedly. Sorsby has to be considered toxic (or "radioactive") to some NFL teams right now. He's dominating offseason headlines, and for all the wrong reasons. June is the most notoriously boring month, of the entire calendar, for people whose favorite sport is football. The well traveled quarterback has given us all something to talk about, during what is traditionally a painfully boring time of year.
However, when you get to the actual season, and in to a NFL camp, almost all of them avoid big media circuses, and the added distractions that come with it. You could argue that the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys are exceptions to this rule.
The Cleveland Browns, having drafted both Johnny Manziel and Shedeur Sanders, are most certainly an exception to this rule.
To simplify it all, Sorsby must win over the court of public opinion, and his only chance to do that is to make people believe he had an addiction, and that he's recovered. As long as people believe that the mess he's in was largely his own doing, no team will likely be interested.
On-the-Field Concern: Staying in Shape, and Keeping Sharp
His tape from 2025 with Cincinnati will need to stand on its own now, and it must do some heavy lifting. Unless Sorsby finds another pro or semi-pro league to play in this year, it's a forced sabbatical for him. And on that sabbatical, he'll need to make sure he stays in tip top shape. Then it would be a matter of getting a combine invite, and impressing while he's there. Or landing some private workouts and wowing the scouts.
He has all the size, measurables and skill sets in his favor, so the potential is certainly there. However, the 2027 quarterback class is really stacked and loaded. So even if Sorsby did not have any baggage, he'd still face an uphill battle next season.
This article originally appeared on Draft Wire: Brendan Sorsby faces big challenges in order to become draft-worthy
Continue reading...
