This story just refuses to run out of twists and turns. The Brendan Sorsby saga has made another unexpected change this week. And it leaves the Miami Dolphins and a slew of other NFL teams likely scrambling. It may be time to begin doing potential preparation for the Supplemental Draft.

Sorsby, who was supposed to be a marquee transfer prize for Texas Tech for the 2026 season, has been bogged down in a tumultuous spring and summer. It’s a mess, to put it mildly. Sorsby has apparently been battling a gambling addiction for years and needed rehab in the spring. After NCAA rulings, injuctions, district courts and more, Sorsby is now seeking entry into the Supplemental Draft. And, yes, the latest on expected cost should have the Miami Dolphins mulling taking a chance on him.

Dane Brugler expects the cost for Brendan Sorsby to be a Day 3 pick

“Nothing has changed in terms of his on-field evaluation — Sorsby is the most talented quarterback prospect to enter the supplemental draft in over 30 years. But obviously, his off-field situation is very serious and complicates his NFL projection. After talking with teams, best guess is a team uses a Day 3 pick on Sorsby.”

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler recently shared that, after talking with teams, the ‘best guess’ is a Day 3 pick will be the cost of business for Sorsby. There will likely be complications with his arrival to the NFL, including a potential suspension due to his NCAA conduct. That’s before you get to the fact that he’ll have missed the first few months of the 2026 NFL offseason programs. Sorsby will be undoubtedly behind the 8-ball, which leaves his contributions this season in doubt.

But at the cost of a Day 3 pick? The Miami Dolphins should unquestionably be doing their homework and preparing to make a bid. The conversation here turns to opportunity cost. What’s the opportunity cost of bidding a fourth-round draft choice in the Supplemental Draft on a physically gifted quarterback who carries an unusual amount of risk?

The Miami Dolphins face little to no risk if they bid on Brendan Sorsby this summer

The risk isn’t financial. The first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft saw their full four-year contract valued at $5.7 million across the four years of play. The signing bonus was $1.3 million. That is, in the grand scheme of things, nothing in the way of NFL salaries. The risk for the Dolphins isn’t about not being able to see the investment through, either. With the football operation currently in their first year, Jon-Eric Sullivan and Jeff Hafley should have several seasons to bring their vision to life for the football team. That would, obviously, include a potential low-risk swing on Sorsby.

The Dolphins aren’t putting risk in play with their on-field product, either. The team obviously has a lot of belief in Malik Willis based on his compensation and how they talk about him. Sorsby wouldn’t be forced to play (barring injury) and his developmental timeline could potentially run parallel to the two years of guarantees on Willis’ contract before the Dolphins assess his growth.

So yeah. You’re going to have to explain the downside here to me like I’m five. If he ends up in trouble, can’t get focused, struggles with the acclimation to the NFL, or anything else? We’re talking about a Day 3 draft choice and a signing bonus under $1.5 million for a franchise that is dead last in the league in cash spending for 2026 and 2027. Oh no!

The Miami Dolphins bidding on Sorsby doesn’t condone his behavior

Look, I get it. There’s a ‘sanctity of the game’ conversation to be had here. I’m not excusing Sorsby’s violations of NCAA rules and regulations. I’m also not dismissing the severity of potentially influencing the outcome of a game for financial gain. That’s not even ‘not good’. It’s ‘quite bad’!

But I give Sorsby credit for seeking out treatment, and I also give him credit for ultimately taking the fallout of this on the nose. Him leaving Tech becomes a real consequence for his actions — even if Tech isn’t looking to recoup any of his NIL compensation.

But there are no shortage of NFL players who have been given opportunities to play at the highest level despite some truly horrific off-field behavior, including some with much worse conduct that taking the under on his college teammate’s passing yards a few years back.

As Sorsby is finding out, there’s a penance to pay for such behavior. If Brugler is right about the price of entry to give Sorsby an opportunity despite his mistakes, the Miami Dolphins should be all over it. If this franchise was willing to acquire Tyreek Hill for the treasure trove of draft choices that they did before paying him nearly $106 million dollars for four years of play? I’m not about to ask them to thumb their nose at a Day 3 pick and an average of less than $1.5 million per season for four years to assume they’ve found their answer at quarterback on the first pop.

Let’s not forget the Miami Dolphins’ QB philsophy, either

Taking their foot off the gas at quarterback also flies directly in the face of what Jon-Eric Sullivan has communicated his quarterback philosophy is, too.

“I grew up in Green Bay. You know the history there. I was not with Ron Wolf, but Ron Wolf’s fingerprints were all over what we did as I moved through my career with Ted Thompson and Brian Gutekunst. I think back when Aaron (Rodgers) was our starter in 2008, but he was a young quarterback, he was not Aaron Rodgers yet. We drafted Brian Brohm in the second round and Matt Flynn in the seventh. And I think if you just look at the history of what Ron did and who Brett Favre’s backups were. With (Matt) Hasselbeck and Aaron Brooks and Ty Detmer, and you can go on and on. Kurt Warner. I don’t think you can ever have too many quarterbacks,” said Sullivan at the 2026 NFL Combine.

“I think that the value of the position cannot be overstated. You have to infuse as much competition into that room every year that you possibly can. But I think it depends on where you are as a team as to when you do that value wise within the draft.”

I mean…come on now. Good teams find ways to acquire cost-effective talent. Sorsby, amid his mistakes and bad decisions, sounds like he may be exactly that. Brugler is expecting a Day 3 cost. And that’s exactly why you shouldn’t dismiss the Miami Dolphins making a bid.

Miami Dolphins News

ESPN’s season projection for quarterback Malik Willis illustrates the worst-case scenario for the Miami Dolphins

Kyle Crabbs June 8, 2026