We Need to Talk About Brendan
There are so many questions to be asked and answered of Malik Willis between now and 2027, and although new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan made a bold statement with the free agent signing of the exciting Packers back-up, the bare truth of the matter is this: he’s not necessarily set up to succeed this season. His wide receiver corps is bereft of talent, and although he arrives in Miami with a strong run game and what could be a decent offensive line, Willis will be expected to make lemonade from a pass-catching group of lemons.
Of course, what he does won’t just be predicated on how his receivers perform. But if Willis has an underwhelming 2026, then Miami will be under enormous pressure heading into what looks like a tremendous 2027 draft class at quarterback. That class is headed up – potentially – by Arch Manning of Texas, Dante Moore of Oregon, and LaNorris Sellers of South Carolina, but could also include Drew Mestemaker, Drake Lindsey, CJ Carr, Trinidad Chambliss, Darian Mensah, Julian Sayin, John Mateer, Sam Leavitt, Jayden Maiava, DJ Lagway, Josh Hoover, Jaden Craig, and more.
So, where would that put Sullivan if, say, the Dolphins end up with the 4th overall pick? You have potential super blue chippers like South Carolina edge Dylan Stewart, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, and Notre Dame CB Leonard Moore, who would each transform underwhelming units on this team. But they could also be staring a QB tsunami in the face, unsure as to whether to stick or twist. If you do the former, you run the risk of passing up a potential franchise superstar and staying the course with a quarterback who can’t rise above the level of average. If you twist and Willis has a dominant 2027, you find yourself stuck with a top ten pick QB who may never play as Willis’s star ascends, all the while knowing that you missed out on aforementioned guys like Stewart, Smith, and Moore.
In the middle of all this sits Brendan Sorsby, one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the ’27 class and someone who I put firmly in the round one mix – albeit a year away – as we build towards the season. Over the last two years at Cincinnati, he turned in a number of big-time performances, and his tape is littered with wow throws. Sure, there’s some inconsistency there, but the race for his signature in the portal underlined his talent – a number of reports had Miami laying down some serious cash for him. In the end, he chose Lubbock and Texas Tech to the tune of between $5 and $6 million dollars in NIL money.
But last week, the Red Raiders announced that he was stepping away from football and checking into a residential treatment program for a gambling addiction after making thousands of small online bets on a variety of sports via a gambling app, jeopardizing his eligibility. Subsequently, ESPN reported that Sorsby had bet on Indiana football while redshirting for the Hoosiers as a true freshman in 2022, a season in which he played in a single game as a reserve. The bets were on Indiana to win, and none came in the game in which Sorsby appeared.
Last Saturday, the QB retained the services of famed attorney Jeffrey Kessler to try to preserve his college eligibility, a move made more complex this week by the Indiana Gaming Commission, the Ohio Casino Control Commission, and the Kentucky Board of Horse Racing & Gaming, all of which are opening investigations into his betting habits. Kessler, who litigated several cases against the NFL, most notably the 1993 suit that created modern free agency and the salary cap, knows the odds are stacked against him: no athlete who bet on their school in any sport has been allowed to continue competing, and the NCAA’s case is strengthened by the fact that, despite multiple sports leagues getting into bed with the gambling industry over the last few years, nobody wants to mess with the integrity of the games.
If Team Kessler is unsuccessful, Sorsby is left with a singular option: the NFL’s Supplemental Draft, which has been in effect for almost half a century and accommodates players who either missed the filing deadline for the draft or had issues develop post that deadline that affected their eligibility. Should he enter, Sorsby would become the biggest name to head to the NFL in this way since Dallas spent a first-rounder on Miami QB Steve Walsh in 1989, or since Seattle did the same for Brian Bosworth two years earlier after he was dismissed from Oklahoma. And if selected, he would be the first player taken since Jalen Thompson by Arizona in 2019. Of course, the NFL itself may have something to say about whether they deem Sorsby eligible, given the circumstances of the allegations.
But let’s kick that can down the road for now.
The question for Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan becomes this: would you use a 2027 draft pick – and probably a high one – on a QB who could have been a top ten selection at worst had he trained on as many – including me – expected this season? And at what point does the reward outweigh the risk?
Albert Breer of The MMQB reported yesterday that the Dolphins would be one of four teams, along with the Cardinals, Browns, and Jets, he believes have a legitimate interest in the passer should he fail in his bid to retain his NCAA eligibility. Whilst Breer mentioned the cost could be a second-round pick, league executives are playing their cards closer to their respective chests. As one such figure told Yahoo.com’s Charles Robinson, “I doubt many teams have really even started serious work on it. This stuff about him being a possible high pick in the supplemental [draft] is just speculation without knowing anything. It’s all 100 miles behind this thing.”
Although that high-ranking AFC official might be right, you can guarantee teams are beginning to look hard at Sorsby’s tape, his character, and taking the very deep dive into his background and the associated gambling issues to ascertain just how deep they go and how much of a risk he is.
And one of those teams is the Dolphins.
A 6’3, 235-pounder with big-time arm talent, his analytic numbers are strong: a 1.8% Turnover Worthy Play rate; a 6.5% Pressure-to-Sack Ratio; and a 90.1 PFF Offensive Grade. The ball explodes off his hand, he throws with multiple arm angles, and he’s outstanding at delivering the ball on the run. The accuracy needs work, as does the decision-making, but the upside is really high. And if he does enter the Supplemental Draft and Miami does take him, the likelihood is that he has two seasons sitting behind Willis to soak up the professional game. That would make him a potential starter before his 25th birthday, which again is a plus.
There are plenty more words to be written about this story. But if Jeffrey Kessler is unsuccessful and the Red Raider passer does indeed enter the Supplemental Draft, Jon-Eric Sullivan will be faced with a big decision. It would also mean Miami would be free to take a non-QB in round one in 2027 in what many believe could be the strongest draft in many, many years.
Food for thought.
We Need to Talk About Brendan
We Need to Talk About Brendan
There are so many questions to be asked and answered of Malik Willis between now and 2027, and although new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan made a bold statement with the free agent signing of the exciting Packers back-up, the bare truth of the matter is this: he’s not necessarily set up to succeed this season. His wide receiver corps is bereft of talent, and although he arrives in Miami with a strong run game and what could be a decent offensive line, Willis will be expected to make lemonade from a pass-catching group of lemons.
Of course, what he does won’t just be predicated on how his receivers perform. But if Willis has an underwhelming 2026, then Miami will be under enormous pressure heading into what looks like a tremendous 2027 draft class at quarterback. That class is headed up – potentially – by Arch Manning of Texas, Dante Moore of Oregon, and LaNorris Sellers of South Carolina, but could also include Drew Mestemaker, Drake Lindsey, CJ Carr, Trinidad Chambliss, Darian Mensah, Julian Sayin, John Mateer, Sam Leavitt, Jayden Maiava, DJ Lagway, Josh Hoover, Jaden Craig, and more.
So, where would that put Sullivan if, say, the Dolphins end up with the 4th overall pick? You have potential super blue chippers like South Carolina edge Dylan Stewart, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, and Notre Dame CB Leonard Moore, who would each transform underwhelming units on this team. But they could also be staring a QB tsunami in the face, unsure as to whether to stick or twist. If you do the former, you run the risk of passing up a potential franchise superstar and staying the course with a quarterback who can’t rise above the level of average. If you twist and Willis has a dominant 2027, you find yourself stuck with a top ten pick QB who may never play as Willis’s star ascends, all the while knowing that you missed out on aforementioned guys like Stewart, Smith, and Moore.
In the middle of all this sits Brendan Sorsby, one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the ’27 class and someone who I put firmly in the round one mix – albeit a year away – as we build towards the season. Over the last two years at Cincinnati, he turned in a number of big-time performances, and his tape is littered with wow throws. Sure, there’s some inconsistency there, but the race for his signature in the portal underlined his talent – a number of reports had Miami laying down some serious cash for him. In the end, he chose Lubbock and Texas Tech to the tune of between $5 and $6 million dollars in NIL money.
But last week, the Red Raiders announced that he was stepping away from football and checking into a residential treatment program for a gambling addiction after making thousands of small online bets on a variety of sports via a gambling app, jeopardizing his eligibility. Subsequently, ESPN reported that Sorsby had bet on Indiana football while redshirting for the Hoosiers as a true freshman in 2022, a season in which he played in a single game as a reserve. The bets were on Indiana to win, and none came in the game in which Sorsby appeared.
Last Saturday, the QB retained the services of famed attorney Jeffrey Kessler to try to preserve his college eligibility, a move made more complex this week by the Indiana Gaming Commission, the Ohio Casino Control Commission, and the Kentucky Board of Horse Racing & Gaming, all of which are opening investigations into his betting habits. Kessler, who litigated several cases against the NFL, most notably the 1993 suit that created modern free agency and the salary cap, knows the odds are stacked against him: no athlete who bet on their school in any sport has been allowed to continue competing, and the NCAA’s case is strengthened by the fact that, despite multiple sports leagues getting into bed with the gambling industry over the last few years, nobody wants to mess with the integrity of the games.
If Team Kessler is unsuccessful, Sorsby is left with a singular option: the NFL’s Supplemental Draft, which has been in effect for almost half a century and accommodates players who either missed the filing deadline for the draft or had issues develop post that deadline that affected their eligibility. Should he enter, Sorsby would become the biggest name to head to the NFL in this way since Dallas spent a first-rounder on Miami QB Steve Walsh in 1989, or since Seattle did the same for Brian Bosworth two years earlier after he was dismissed from Oklahoma. And if selected, he would be the first player taken since Jalen Thompson by Arizona in 2019. Of course, the NFL itself may have something to say about whether they deem Sorsby eligible, given the circumstances of the allegations.
But let’s kick that can down the road for now.
The question for Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan becomes this: would you use a 2027 draft pick – and probably a high one – on a QB who could have been a top ten selection at worst had he trained on as many – including me – expected this season? And at what point does the reward outweigh the risk?
Albert Breer of The MMQB reported yesterday that the Dolphins would be one of four teams, along with the Cardinals, Browns, and Jets, he believes have a legitimate interest in the passer should he fail in his bid to retain his NCAA eligibility. Whilst Breer mentioned the cost could be a second-round pick, league executives are playing their cards closer to their respective chests. As one such figure told Yahoo.com’s Charles Robinson, “I doubt many teams have really even started serious work on it. This stuff about him being a possible high pick in the supplemental [draft] is just speculation without knowing anything. It’s all 100 miles behind this thing.”
Although that high-ranking AFC official might be right, you can guarantee teams are beginning to look hard at Sorsby’s tape, his character, and taking the very deep dive into his background and the associated gambling issues to ascertain just how deep they go and how much of a risk he is.
And one of those teams is the Dolphins.
A 6’3, 235-pounder with big-time arm talent, his analytic numbers are strong: a 1.8% Turnover Worthy Play rate; a 6.5% Pressure-to-Sack Ratio; and a 90.1 PFF Offensive Grade. The ball explodes off his hand, he throws with multiple arm angles, and he’s outstanding at delivering the ball on the run. The accuracy needs work, as does the decision-making, but the upside is really high. And if he does enter the Supplemental Draft and Miami does take him, the likelihood is that he has two seasons sitting behind Willis to soak up the professional game. That would make him a potential starter before his 25th birthday, which again is a plus.
There are plenty more words to be written about this story. But if Jeffrey Kessler is unsuccessful and the Red Raider passer does indeed enter the Supplemental Draft, Jon-Eric Sullivan will be faced with a big decision. It would also mean Miami would be free to take a non-QB in round one in 2027 in what many believe could be the strongest draft in many, many years.
Food for thought.
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