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Quarterback Brendan Sorsby #2 could be of interest to the Cleveland Browns.

At this point, the Cleveland Browns are a football team that has done well to supplement the most important position on a football team without having a player in whom they’re confident can man the most important position on a football team. It’s a bit of a circuitous way to build a roster, but the Browns are determined to see whether they’ve done enough in 2026 to hide up the flaws of their top two candidates for that most important position, Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders.

The Browns probably don’t want any curveballs coming their way at this point–they’ve been careful about not adding more quarterbacks to their current mix until it’s clear what they’ve got. But a curveball may be coming anyway: Brendan Sorsby, the former Cincinnati star who transferred to Texas Tech on a big new NIL deal but who, it has been revealed, also has done some extensive gambling that could cost him his collegiate eligibility.

Sorsby reportedly entered a residential program to help with his gambling addiction, and is on indefinite leave. If he can’t return to college, he could slide into the NFL early thanks to a rarely used mechanism: The NFL supplemental draft, which would be held in July, but has not produced an NFL player since 2019.

Browns Eyeing Brendan Sorsby

Sorsby would require a lot of unpacking for any team curious about selecting him there. That includes the Browns, who are almost certain to pick a quarterback in the first round of the NFL draft, but could potentially land him now. Sorsby is considered to have first-round talent, but as we have seen, it is a long way to having first-round talent nearly a year before the next NFL draft, and actually being taken in the first round of that draft.

Still, the Browns are apparently taking things seriously with Sorsby, who threw for 2,800 yards in 12 games last year, with 27 touchdowns and five interceptions. According to a report from Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland, “The Browns are among the teams putting in work on Sorsby, per a source.”

Browns Tabbed as Brendan Sorsby Landing Spot

That comes after Todd McShay, the NFL draft guru of The Ringer, suggested that the Browns, Dolphins and Jets should be among those weighing whether to take on Sorsby, though it would cost them a first-round pick in 2027.

Said McShay on his podcast, “If I’m the, I don’t know, the Browns. If we have the quarterback coach, and we have the contract the right way, we have the psychologists putting a stamp on it. …If we can get aligned, I think this guy’s worth it. And if that’s the case, I get to draft him, and I’m doing it with a first-round pick. And I’m doing that because I think he’s got a chance to be special.”

Could the QB Room Handle Another Contender?

Such a move would shake up the Browns’ situation, and out of the three teams in question, Cleveland is probably most prepared to take on a rookie like Sorsby. The Browns have done ample work to create what GM Andrew Berry called an improved “quarterback ecosystem” and if Sorsby is that good, perhaps this is a chance to jump the line in next year’s draft and get their man now.

Still, Sorsby had a lot to prove in his senior year at Texas Tech, and there’s a chance he could be suspended for the year and not allowed to prove it. It would be a big risk (best not to use the word “gamble” in this context) for the Browns to drop him into the mix with Watson and Sanders, and would cost them a chance to draft their guy next year, even without the gambling concerns.

Hard to see it as a risk worth taking.