The saga surrounding Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby has taken college football by storm. With over $5 million at stake if he can’t execute on his obligation to the Red Raiders as a result of his extensive history of sports gambling, his impending eligibility for 2026 would have massive implications on the College Football Playoff race.
Brendan Sorsby’s Potential Path to the NFL
It would have huge implications on the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft, as well. Sorsby has until June 30 to declare for the supplemental draft, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter indicated on The Pat McAfee Show that there would be “a real possibility” Sorsby would be selected if he chooses to declare.
No player has been selected in the supplemental draft since the Arizona Cardinals took safety Jalen Thompson in the fifth round in 2019. That investment paid off for the Cardinals, as he ended up starting for them for seven seasons before he signed a three-year, $36 million deal with the Dallas Cowboys in March.
If an NFL team makes a pick in the supplemental draft, that player would be added to their 90-man roster immediately with the opportunity to play that season. Whichever round selection a team uses on that player, they would forfeit their selection in that round of the following draft, in this case, the 2027 NFL Draft.
Could Sorsby be the one to break that streak without a supplemental pick? If so, how high could he get drafted? Join us as we break down his case as an NFL Draft prospect and evaluate his tape.
Brendan Sorsby’s NFL Draft Scouting Report
Going into this year’s transfer portal, Sorsby was seen as one of the top quarterbacks on the market. Rightfully so, in fact: with 30 collegiate starts, he’s one of the most experienced starters in college that didn’t enter the 2026 NFL Draft. He started as a redshirt freshman for Indiana in 2023, and two years as Cincinnati’s starter had him well-regarded when Texas Tech signed him out of the portal.
In my 2026 NFL Draft preparation for Cincinnati wide receivers Jeff Caldwell and Cyrus Allen, I got a good amount of exposure to Sorsby before diving deeper into his strengths and weaknesses specifically. He did a good job of putting his receivers in a good position to succeed.
First and foremost, you have to talk about Sorsby’s arm talent. He has the elasticity to deliver fast throws from any angle, utilizing sidearm throws to direct passes around defenders. The velocity and zip he gets behind his passes are truly impressive. That pure arm strength allows him to fit throws into short-lived windows.
There are some serious flashes of timing behind some of Sorsby’s passes. Especially across the middle of the field, he’s one of the more efficient passers you’ll find in college football. He can thread the needle and work the seam thanks to his aforementioned arm talent, as well as the touch he displays hitting his receivers in stride.
Listed at 6’3″ and 235 pounds, Sorsby has an NFL-ready frame for the quarterback position. He possesses good height to stand tall and scan the field, and he also has a dense frame that’s filled out, which helps him take hits in the pocket and battle through would-be tacklers when he takes off as a runner.
That running ability might be Sorsby’s most underrated quality. Cincinnati executed plenty of read options in 2025, during which he demonstrated good judgment reading the edge defender with above-average acceleration taking off with the ball. He won’t wow you making defenders miss in space, but he can run in a straight line quite well.
As far as the polish in his game goes, Sorsby still has a long way to go. He trusts his arm a little too much, which can see him try to force the ball into tight windows too often. That raw arm talent works sometimes, but he delivers the ball into crowded quarters far too often.
Part of the reason that backfires on Sorsby is because he stares down his first read too often. It’s much easier to act upon your progressions as a defensive back when the opposing quarterback is a one-read passer, which he predominantly is at this stage. As far as full-field progressions and finding the checkdown option go, he’s unproven.
Sorsby particularly struggles throwing to his right, which is a bit unusual as a right-handed quarterback. His passer rating on throws outside the hashmarks to the right is just 42.4 on passes that travel 20+ yards, and it’s only 66.9 in the range of 10 to 19 yards out. Part of that might be the wider hashmarks college teams have to work with, though.
Brendan Sorsby’s College Stats and Accolades
Career:
- Passing Yards: 7,208
- Passing Touchdowns: 60
- Interceptions: 18
- Completion Percentage: 61.4%
- Passer Rating: 96.5
- Rushing Yards: 1,295
- Rushing Touchdowns: 22
2025 (at Cincinnati):
- Passing Yards: 2,800
- Passing Touchdowns: 27
- Interceptions: 5
- Completion Percentage: 61.4%
- Passer Rating: 107.0
- Rushing Yards: 580
- Rushing Touchdowns: 9
- PFSN QB Impact Score: 88.2 (10th in FBS)
How High in the Supplemental Draft Could Brendan Sorsby Be Drafted?
All told, Sorsby is a raw but physically gifted quarterback who showcased some serious potential during his 2025 season at Cincinnati. Another year of polishing at Texas Tech could propel him into early-round status, though if he enters the supplemental draft, that obviously won’t be an option for him.
Had he declared for the 2026 NFL Draft, Sorsby would have been my third-ranked quarterback in this year’s class. The only two prospects I would have had above him would have been Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson, and both players ended up drafted in the first round.
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That’s not to say Sorsby would’ve been a first-round pick, far from it. Given his raw mental processing capabilities, I would have projected him as a Day 2 selection. When you throw in his run-in with sports gambling issues, you have a potential conflict of interest and another factor hurting his draft stock.
If he declares, I would be willing to use a fourth-round pick on Sorsby in the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft. His draft profile has its fair share of concerns, but he’s a natural thrower of the football with the arm talent and other physical attributes worth developing as a potential future NFL starter in the making.
