Cardinals pleaded to target QB Brendan Sorsby by NFL analysts ahead of 2026 season

Texas Tech's Brendan Sorsby talks to coaches during the spring football game, Friday, April 17, 2026, at Jones AT&T Stadium. Syndication: Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

GLENDALE – After a long-waited decisions by courts, committees and appeals of those decisions, the Brendan Sorsby takes a turn. The 22-year-old has declared for the NFL supplemental draft, following his gambling controversy. One of the most premier players that has entered this event in quite some times, and experts believe the Arizona Cardinals should take a chance.

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Following his best collegiate year, with 2,800 passing yards and 27 touchdowns, Sorsby was projected to be one of the top QBs in the 2027 class. However, teams will get their first chance in the supplemental draft, which is the place USA Today’s Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz believes the Cardinals should target.

Middlehurst-Schwartz on why Arizona should take risk:

“The Cardinals have the most restrained approach to investing resources at quarterback. That nearly blank slate given to first-year coach Mike LaFleur could constitute the optimal setup for Sorsby to launch his professional career. Even if he sat out the entirety of what’s sure to be a transitional season for both him and Arizona, Sorsby would still draw a sharp contrast with the veteran Brissett and rookie Beck, neither of whom can measure up in their fluidity as throwers.”

The NFL supplemental draft don’t happen every year, the last time a player was selected was in 2019. The reason for the rarity is a team has to forfeit a draft pick for the following year’s draft. For example, if Arizona wants Sorsby, and it’s willing to put a third-round pick on the line, that pick is gone from the 2027 NFL draft.

Despite the heavy price, the irony of the situation is that the Cardinals were the last team to take someone in the supplemental draft in 2019, using a fifth-round pick on Jalen Thompson. That decision turned out to be a great one, as he and Budda Baker became the team’s safety duo for the next six seasons.

Most teams elect to just wait till next April’s draft because the players that typical enter the Supplemental draft is facing some type of academic or disciplinary punishment to lose college credibility. Sorsby is a rare case of a player of his talents being put in this position. Arizona already has three quarterbacks on the roster, but with nothing to lose, general manager Monti Ossenfort might be willingly to let go of a future pick.

The 2027 season is likely a rebuilding year for the franchise, but the pressure on Ossenfort remains the same. He surprisingly survived being fired by owner Michael Bidwill, with head coach Jonathan Gannon being let go. Bidwill stated at the end of last year that the team wouldn’t be tanking, but Ossenfort’s offseason moves tells a different story. If the team has another 3-14 season, would Ossenfort survive?

If the answer is uncertain, that could lead the fourth-year GM to look towards Sorsby in the Supplemental Draft because those picks in 2027 don’t mean anything if he’s out of a job. At the same time, using a pick on the young QB could be the defining-move to get him kicked out the door. Looking at Ossenfort’s past move, he’ll likely pass on Sorsby. But, if in the coming weeks his job is in jeopardy and Jacoby Brissett doesn’t report to training camp, Ossenfort could pull out a desperate move for a talented, young QB.

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Reporter Tanner Tortorella covers general assignment for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @TannerTSports