Brendan Sorsby’s NFL Path Blocked as League Cancels 2026 Supplemental Draft

Posted on: June 24, 2026, 12:30h. 

Last updated on: June 24, 2026, 12:30h.

Mark Keast Read More
Expertise: Canadian Gaming, iGaming, Las Vegas, Sports Betting, NFL, Boxing, UFC.
  • League said it can cancel the NFL Supplemental Draft at its sole discretion
  • Quarterback Brendan Sorsby, dealing with a self-admitted gambling addiction, had been hoping to enter the NFL via the Supplemental Draft
  • The NFL, in a letter to Sorsby, said he hasn’t shown accountability for his actions

The National Football League (NFL) has cancelled the 2026 Supplemental Draft, another obstacle blocking embattled quarterback Brendan Sorsby in his efforts to resume his football career.

Brendan Sorsby of the Cincinnati Bearcats runs into the end zone during the first half of the game between Cincinnati Bearcats and Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT, last November. (Image: Bryan Byerly/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Gambling Addiction

According to ESPN reporting, the NFL sent a letter to Sorsby and his lawyers explaining their decision after Sorsby had filed to enter the Supplemental Draft.

The NFL Supplemental Draft is a special draft held during the summer that allows eligible college players who experienced a change in circumstances after the regular draft declaration deadline – such as losing NCAA eligibility or leaving school unexpectedly –  to enter the NFL.

Teams selecting that player forfeit the equivalent pick in the following year’s draft. It’s not held every year, however. The last one that occurred with player selections was 2019, when the Arizona Cardinals used a fifth-round pick to select safety Jalen Thompson.

NFL Letter to Sorsby

In the letter to Sorsby, the NFL said it’s their right in the collective bargaining agreement to hold or not hold the draft. ESPN reported that the NFL viewed Sorsby as a distraction for teams as they head into training camps.

Sorsby has been embroiled in a gambling controversy, after admitting he made thousands of sports bets while playing NCAA football at Indiana, Cincinnati and finally Texas Tech, including an admission in court documents that he bet on his own team while at Indiana, breaking NCAA rules.

The NCAA declared him permanently ineligible. Sorsby was about to debut as the starting quarterback at Texas Tech after transferring to that school from Cincinnati in a multimillion-dollar NIL deal in December.

Strict NCAA Rules Around Gambling

Under NCAA rules, student-athletes are forbidden to bet on any NCAA-sanctioned sports, college or professional, and face permanent loss of eligibility if the individual is found to have bet on their own team or on teams in different sports from the same school.

A U.S. District Court Judge granted a temporary injunction against the NCAA June 8, opening the door for the highly touted 22-year-old quarterback to re-start his Texas Tech career. But when the Big 12 filed in federal court to block Sorsby’s re-entry into the league, and punish Texas Tech, Sorsby opted for the NFL Supplemental Draft (June 15).

In the NFL letter, from Lawrence Ferazani, General Counsel of the NFL Management Council, posted by NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero on X, Sorsby was told no other player had sought entry into the Supplemental Draft this year. The deadline for players to file for the draft is June 22.

No Accountability for Conduct, According to NFL

“Under our Collective Bargaining Agreement, the League retains sole discretion to determine whether it is appropriate to conduct a Supplemental draft in any given 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. 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.”

The letter was critical of Sorsby, saying his petition to enter the Supplemental Draft didn’t demonstrate accountability for his conduct, or indicate whether Sorsby would adhere to the NFL’s rules governing integrity of competition.

Is the CFL an Option?

“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,” the letter read.

Sorsby’s attorneys said they would be appealing the NFL’s decision to the NFL Players Association.

Ferazani, at the end of the letter, advised Sorsby to prepare for possible entry into the NFL through the 2027 NFL Draft.

Sorsby completed a treatment rehabilitation program for his gambling addiction in April after admitting that he placed bets in violation of NCAA rules.

What’s up next for Sorsby isn’t clear. The Canadian Football League (CFL) was mentioned in reporting as a possibility, but the CFL season has already begun (June 4), and no team has claimed Sorsby’s negotiation rights, meaning it would be an uphill effort to play professional football north of the border this year.