Even with Brendan Sorsby being the most high-profile player in at least 15 years to apply for the NFL supplemental draft, a consistent theme stands out in conversations with NFL front offices — a belief that the Texas Tech quarterback’s gambling scandal will likely drop him lower than the second-round range predicted in some media reports.
In recent days, CBS Sports spoke with six front-office and personnel sources. Four of them — an assistant general manager and three player personnel directors — said they think Sorsby goes in the fourth round or later.
The two others — a college scouting director and a national scout — predicted a third-round selection.
“I think the issues will push him down,” the assistant GM said. “Talent is first or second round, but wouldn’t surprise me if he’s picked more in the fifth (round range), maybe fourth depending on the team’s appetite for risk-reward.”
If not for the gambling scandal, the outlook for Sorsby would be much different.
Multiple of the aforementioned sources view Sorsby, who started at Cincinnati over the last two years before transferring to Texas Tech in January, as better than all the quarterbacks from this year’s NFL draft aside from Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson. Had he been in the draft, those sources believe he would have gone somewhere in the first two rounds, possibly even as early as the first round.
“Ridiculously talented,” a college scouting director said. “The ball just absolutely pops. He’s got one of the best arms that’s come out in a while. He’s athletic. The gambling stuff scares you, and I don’t see him being like a guy Year 1 (ready to start), but you can redshirt him for a year in the NFL, and you have a chance to hit on a lottery ticket that’s pretty good.”
One of the front office sources also shared that, from a talent standpoint, Sorsby is a better prospect than other recent early-round QBs coming out of college, such as Will Levis, the No. 33 overall pick in 2023.
“He has (NFL) starter talent,” a player personnel director said. “I think that part is clear to me. There are and were unresolved questions about how he is with being on schedule, accuracy, playing within the pocket, anticipation and then whether or not the athletic nature and playmaking ability to extend and all that stuff would translate and transfer, so another season would have been good to see. But in terms of pure talent, has starter ability.”
| Player | School/Team | 2026 QB Rank | Draft Status | 2025 Passing Stats | 2025 Rushing Stats | Height | Weight | 40 Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brendan Sorsby | Cincinnati/Texas Tech | N/A — supplemental draft | Applied for 2026 NFL supplemental draft | 207-of-336, 2,800 yards, 27 TD, 5 INT, 61.6% | 100 carries, 580 yards, 9 TD | 6-3 | 235 | 4.65 |
| Fernando Mendoza | Indiana | No. 1 | Round 1, No. 1 overall — Raiders | 273-of-379, 3,535 yards, 41 TD, 6 INT, 72.0% | 7 rushing TD | 6-5 | 236 | 4.85 |
| Ty Simpson | Alabama | No. 2 | Round 1, No. 13 overall — Rams | 305-of-473, 3,567 yards, 28 TD, 5 INT, 64.5% | 90 carries, 93 yards, 2 TD | 6-1 | 211 | 4.80 |
| Garrett Nussmeier | LSU | No. 3 | Round 7, No. 249 overall — Chiefs | 1,927 yards, 12 TD, 5 INT, 67.4% | N/A | 6-2 | 203 | 4.82 |
| Carson Beck | Miami | No. 4 | Round 3, No. 65 overall — Cardinals | 338-of-467, 3,813 yards, 30 TD, 12 INT, 72.4% | 0.7 yards per carry | 6-5 | 233 | 4.84 |
| Cade Klubnik | Clemson | No. 5 | Round 4, No. 110 overall — Jets | 257-of-392, 2,943 yards, 16 TD, 6 INT, 65.6% | 94 yards, 4 TD | 6-2 | 207 | 4.69 |
Typically, a quarterback viewed as a future starter ends up going in the first or second round. However, this is a complicated and unprecedented situation, and as one player personnel director pointed out, the NFL takes gambling seriously to the point that wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for the entire 2022 season for betting on NFL games.
There are a number of NFL front office staffers still unsure whether the league will approve Sorsby’s entry into the supplemental draft. There are also a good number of front-office staffers who expect the NFL to make an example of Sorsby, who admitted to placing at least $90,000 in bets while in college, including at least 40 on Indiana football games while he was on the Hoosiers’ roster.
“They’re probably going to make a statement because they don’t want it to continue to happen with other players,” a player personnel director said.
Even if he’s approved for the supplemental draft, the chance of a lengthy suspension has at least some NFL front offices viewing Sorsby as essentially a redshirt candidate whom teams would be taking a flier for 2027 and beyond.
It is worth noting, though, as a recent example surely to be referenced by Sorsby’s legal team with the NFL, that the league didn’t suspend New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte despite it coming out that Boutte had bet on sports while in college at LSU, including on several LSU football games. One difference, however, is that Boutte was already in the NFL and had already played a season with the Patriots before being arrested on those gambling charges in January 2024.
“Wouldn’t be surprised by anything (with the NFL and the Sorsby situation),” a player personnel said.
For now, the plan for Sorsby is to hold a pro day July 10 at Carroll High School in his home state of Texas with the hope of then being selected in the supplemental draft.
“Some teams might just on a principle matter, be like: Nope, we’re not doing that (with taking him),” a player personnel director said. “Then you have the teams who don’t need a young quarterback to play in the not-too-distant future. Do you want all of that noise, for lack of better term, just for a backup? I would be surprised if a team used a Day 2 pick given all those factors other than a team with like a medium range need at the position with a lot of organizational stability and security, like if you’re the Eagles and you’re just like: Oh, well, we could just do this and if it blows up in our face, it doesn’t matter and maybe we’ll have our Jalen Hurts replacement in two years and we get him in the third round of the supplemental. I could see that.
“But do I think like the Jets are going to haul off and take him in Day 2 of the supplemental? No. Do I think the Vikings are going to do that? No. You have three first-time GMs. Are they going to make their first-ever quarterback pick Brendan Sorsby in the supplemental? I would bet against it. I just think the universe of teams that will be in on him is smaller because of everything that goes with it.”
