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Quarterback Brendan Sorsby.

With the season on the line, we got to find out exactly what the Denver Broncos had at backup quarterback when Jarrett Stidham trotted out to start the AFC Championship Game against the New England Patriots.

After a 10-7 home loss, it was obvious that Stidham just isn’t the guy who can help the Broncos in a pinch, no matter how much head coach Sean Payton tried to blame everyone else for the loss.

Now, with huge questions about the long-term health of starting quarterback Bo Nix after he fractured his ankle in the AFC Divisional Round — questions that Payton brought to the public eye — there is no more wild card position on the roster right now than at quarterback.

So, in that case, why not do something really wild — maybe the wildest thing possible — and use the supplemental draft to take Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby, should he wind up there.

Sorsby, a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2027 NFL draft, was declared ineligible by the NCAA after it came to light that he made over $90,000 in illegal online bets over the last 4 years, including betting on Indiana when he played quarterback there in 2022.

Sorsby played 2 seasons at Indiana and the last 2 seasons at Cincinnati.

He transferred to Texas Tech on an NIL deal reportedly worth $5 million for the 2026 season. Sorsby entered an inpatient program to deal with his gambling addiction and has since apologized publicly.

How the NFL Supplemental Draft Works

In the most basic terms, the supplemental draft is a “blind” bidding process. Teams bid on the round they think a player will be taken, and whoever has the highest bid on any particular player gets him and forfeits that round’s pick the next year.

Since 1977, 46 players have been taken, but none since the Arizona Cardinals selected Washington State safety Jalen Thompson with a 5th round pick in 2019. No quarterback has been selected since Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor by the Oakland Raiders for a 3rd round pick in 2011.

If multiple teams bid on a player in the same round, the team that is highest in the draft order gets him.

In the case of the Broncos and Sorsby, it might be worth a bid for a 2nd or 3rd-round pick to see if he drops to them.

Infamous Supplemental Draft Moment by Cowboys

There is 1 infamous moment in the history of the supplemental draft that might serve as a warning — or encouragement — for the Broncos to make a move.

After drafting future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1989 NFL draft, Cowboys 1st-year head coach Jimmy Johnson used a 1st round supplemental pick that same year on his quarterback at the University of Miami, Steve Walsh.

That pick turned into the No. 1 overall pick in the 1990 NFL draft after the Cowboys went 1-15 that season. Taking Walsh served as a springboard of motivation for the rest of Aikman’s career as he went on to lead the Cowboys to 3 Super Bowl wins over the next 7 seasons.

Walsh was traded to the New Orleans Saints 3 games into the 1990 season.