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NFL calls Brendan Sorsby's issues 'too significant,' declines 2026 supplemental draft
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- NFL calls Brendan Sorsby's issues 'too significant,' declines 2026 supplemental draft
Brendan Sorsby 's football future is in limbo once again.
The NFL ruled on June 23 it will not hold a supplemental draft this summer, thereby denying the Texas Tech quarterback entry into the league for the 2026 season.
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Sorsby had applied for entry into the league's supplemental draft after ending his battle with the NCAA to compete at the collegiate level this fall. He was granted a temporary injunction to play for Texas Tech despite violating the NCAA's gambling policies but later withdrew his lawsuit, making him ineligible to play at the collegiate level while setting him up for a push into the pros.
Larry Ferazani, general counsel of the NFL Management Council, wrote in a letter to Sorsby that the league had "sole discretion" of whether to hold a supplemental draft, which has not been conducted since 2023. Ferazani added that no other player had applied for the event this year.
"Your Petition — filed three business days before the deadline, without any supporting information or documentation, and only after abandoning your recent litigation efforts to avoid NCAA sanctions — does not provide a basis for the League to alter those plans," Ferazani wrote. "The issues presented by your Petition are too significant, and too closely tied to the League's core integrity interests, to permit meaningful review within the timeline presented."
Ferazani concluded his letter by writing, "By all accounts, you are a talented player with the potential for future success. We encourage you to focus on preparing for possible entry into the NFL through the 2027 NFL Annual Draft."
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But Jeffrey Kessler, Sorsby's agent, said in a statement to Tom Pelissero that his client had inquired about applying for the supplemental draft in late April and was told "that all that was required was a short application."
"At no point did the NFL indicate that it would need or want to review anything other than the application itself or that submitting the application at or close to the deadline would have any impact on the NFL's consideration," Kessler said.
Said Kessler in a statement to USA TODAY Sports: "This is an unlawful act in violation of the (collective bargaining agreement). The player is going to bring this to the (NFL Players Association)."
Sorsby, who transferred from Cincinnati to Texas Tech earlier this year, admitted to placing "thousands" of online bets, including ones on Indiana in 2022, when he was a true freshman on the team. He completed a 35-day inpatient rehab program in Arizona for gambling addiction.
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Why did NFL deny Brendan Sorsby 's application to supplemental draft?
In his letter to Sorsby, Ferazani wrote that the "sole reasons" that the Texas Tech quarterback identified for pursuing the supplemental draft in his application were being "declared ineligible" by the NCAA and having "exhausted all of (his) avenues to continue in the NCAA."
The application, however "provides no information regarding the basis for, or timing of, the NCAA's decision," per Ferazani. He added that the NFL did not have "complete record of the NCAA's investigation" into Sorsby's gambling.
"Available information nonetheless indicates that, over the course of your collegiate career, you knowingly engaged in repeated and significant violations of NCAA rules designed to preserve the integrity of athletic competition," Ferazani wrote.
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Ferazani wrote that Sorsby did not address any of the violations, nor did he "demonstrate accountability for your conduct or indicate whether, or how, you would adhere to the League's rules and policies governing the integrity of competition."
"Instead, even after receiving notice of the NCAA's decision rescinding your college eligibility in May, you sought to avoid the consequences of that determination through litigation rather than accepting responsibility for your actions, and you pursued entry into the NFL only after abandoning those efforts."
Brendan Sorsby's agent on decision to pursue NFL
Ron Slavin, Sorsby's agent, told 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on June 17 that his client had felt forced out amid mounting criticism and a federal lawsuit by the Big 12 conference, which sought to establish legal avenues by which it could assert authority to punish the quarterback.
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"It just came down to too much pressure from everybody else on Tech, and Brendan still wanted to play at Tech. This wasn't Brendan Sorsby not wanting to play college football," Slavin said. "This was Brendan Sorsby just being advised by the school that ... you know, we had seven days left to file for the supplemental draft and didn't know where this thing was going to go. So we won in court, we did our job on our side, but for whatever reason, the world melted down like college football was ruined forever."
Sorsby, a native of Denton, Texas, had been scheduled to hold a pro day for teams on July 10 at Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas, according to multiple reports.
Slavin had been optimistic about how early his client might have been selected in the supplemental draft.
"If you go (by) a human being, he's the first overall pick," Slavin said. "He's a great kid. There's nothing that you're ever going to have to worry about him off the field. The apps on his phones and all that's been taken care of, and I really don't think it's gonna be an issue moving forward. I don't think he's got that type of personality.
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"And on the field, I mean he's, like I said, he's 6'3, 235 (pounds). He's – I believe, if we had him run a (40-yard dash), he's gonna run in the 4.4s. And his arm talent is ridiculous."
Brendan Sorsby gambling history
Sorsby violated NCAA gambling policies and has admitted to doing so . The quarterback placed thousands of bets on various sports , including games involving Indiana, while he was a true freshman with the team in 2022.
He continued to place bets after transferring from Cincinnati to Texas Tech in January 2026. Over a four-year period, he wagered more than $90,000, including on professional sports leagues.
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What is the NFL supplemental draft?
The supplemental draft is a mechanism by which players who lost their collegiate eligibility. Unlike the annual draft held in the spring, however, the event does not hold a fixed place on the league's calendar.
According to Section 2 of Article 6 of the collective bargaining agreement, "If a player who was not eligible for the Draft in any League Year becomes eligible after the date of the Draft, he will be eligible to be selected in a Supplemental Draft, if the League elects to conduct such a Draft, on or before the seventh calendar day prior to the opening of the first training camp that League Year."
Teams that are interested in acquiring a player in the supplemental draft submit a bid with a designated round. The highest bidder – determined first by round, then an order established in three tiers – is awarded the rights to said player, and the team forfeits its corresponding selection in next year's draft.
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The league has not held a supplemental draft since 2023, when neither player eligible for selection – Jackson State's Malachi Wideman and Purdue's Milton Wright – was selected. The last player to be chosen in the supplemental draft was safety Jalen Thompson , whom the Arizona Cardinals took with a fifth-round draft pick in 2019.
Brendan Sorsby college stats
In 2025, his second season with Cincinnati, Sorsby threw for 2,800 yards with 27 passing touchdowns and five interceptions. He added 580 yards and nine touchdowns on 100 carries.
Brendan Sorsby age
Sorsby turned 22 on Jan. 20.
Brendan Sorsby's lawyer on NFL's decision not to hold supplemental draft
Sorsby's attorney, Jeffrey Kessler, released a larger statement obtained by NFL media's Tom Pelissero June 23:
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"In late April, we inquired with the NFL about the process for gaining entry into the Supplemental Draft. The response from the League was that all that was required was a short application, which needed to be submitted prior to June 22. At no point did the NFL indicate that it would need or want to review anything other than the application itself or that submitting the application at or close to the deadline would have any impact on the NFL's consideration. Last week, we requested the NFL's supplemental draft application. The application asked for basic biographical information, responses to four yes-or-no questions and included a small space for Mr. Sorsby to state "why are you applying for the 2026 Supplemental Draft?" It did not provide an opportunity or ask that Mr. Sorsby submit any additional documentation or information. Mr. Sorsby fully completed the application and submitted it to the NFL within hours of receiving it. Mr. Sorsby's agent followed up with the NFL to ask if any additional information was needed or if the NFL had any questions. The NFL declined that invitation. The NFL gave its letter purporting to deny Mr. Sorsby entry to the Supplemental Draft to the media before sending it to Mr. Sorsby. He learned that the NFL was not planning to hold a Supplemental Draft when the media reported it."
NFL alerted media of supplemental draft denial before Sorsby
Brendan Sorsby learned that the NFL was rejecting his petition to enter the league's supplemental draft, just as almost everyone else did.
According to a statement from the offices of Jeffrey Kessler , Sorsby's attorney, the NFL alerted the media that it would be denying the former Texas Tech quarterback's supplemental draft application before it alerted Sorsby himself.
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"The NFL gave its letter purporting to deny Mr. Sorsby entry to the Supplemental Draft to the media before sending it to Mr. Sorsby," the statement said. "He learned that the NFL was not planning to hold a Supplemental Draft when the media reported it."
According to Kessler, Sorsby did not receive the letter until after the NFL "gave [it] ... to the media," and he did not receive any indication that earlier submission or additional materials were necessary. The statement from Kessler's office says that Sorsby completed and submitted his application to enter the supplemental draft "within hours of receiving it" last week.
USA TODAY Sports' Jack McKessy contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brendan Sorsby gambling history cited by NFL in denying supplemental draft
