No 2026 supplemental draft; Brendan Sorsby’s NFL path paused
Brendan Sorsby is not going to play within the NFL in 2026 because the league has elected to not maintain a supplemental draft.
The NFL’s determination got here right down to the league’s proper within the collective bargaining settlement to carry a draft, as league officers felt it might in the end grow to be a distraction to groups as they start to begin coaching camp.
“His application carries with it a lot of issues,” an NFL supply informed ESPN. “Core of the game integrity issues.”
Sorsby admitted to betting 1000’s of instances on faculty and professional sports activities, bets that totaled upwards of $90,000. Those bets included 40 bets on Indiana soccer whereas on the roster on the faculty.
Sorsby’s lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, informed ESPN the NFL’s determination to not maintain a supplemental draft “is a violation of the CBA and the law. We will pursue this immediately with the NFLPA.”
The league informed Sorsby in a letter obtained by ESPN: “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.”
Here’s the NFL’s letter to Brendan Sorsby, informing him it’s declining his petition to enter the supplemental draft, which is not going to be held this yr. pic.twitter.com/Tfoei8fCjp
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 23, 2026
Sorsby had initially been issued a short lived injunction to clear his path to play at Texas Tech Red Raiders this season. But when the Big 12 filed in federal courtroom with goals to punish Sorsby and Texas Tech, Sorsby withdrew his go well with and declared for the supplemental draft.
The league’s letter to Sorsby stated that the “sole reasons” he sought entry in his petition have been he’d been declared ineligible.
“The Petition provides no information regarding the basis for, or timing of, the NCAA’s decision,” the letter states. “Public sources, however, indicate that in May 2026 the NCAA issued a determination declaring you permanently ineligible from participation in college athletics, based on a sustained pattern of improper gambling activity during your collegiate career at three different universities.”
The letter, signed by Larry Ferazani, the final counsel of the NFL Management Council provides that his petition doesn’t “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 discover of the NCAA’s determination rescinding your faculty eligibility in May, you sought to keep away from the results of that dedication by means of litigation fairly than accepting duty to your actions, and also you pursued entry into the NFL solely after abandoning these efforts.”
The NFL hasn’t held a supplemental draft since 2019. Sorsby would potentially be able to play in the CFL. He’s currently ineligible to play under NCAA rules.
“As Commissioner Goodell has emphasised, participation within the NFL is a privilege that carries with it vital tasks, together with accountability,” Ferazani said. “By all accounts, you’re a proficient participant with the potential for future success. We encourage you to concentrate on getting ready for doable entry into the NFL by means of the 2027 NFL Annual Draft.”
Sorsby was the No. 1 player in the NCAA transfer portal this offseason, and his admission to gambling and subsequent trip to an in-house treatment facility loomed as the biggest football story of the offseason.
The NFL source added of Sorsby’s late filing: “It’s an avoidance of that distraction (to groups) attributable to his personal timing.”
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport contributed to this report.
