'Slippery slope' to draft embattled QB Sorsby, says Browns' Monken - ESPN

BEREA, Ohio — Browns coach Todd Monken said it would be a «slippery slope» to draft Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby in the NFL's supplemental draft if he is ineligible to play college football because of gambling.

Attorneys for Sorsby are seeking a temporary injunction permitting him to play in 2026 after the NCAA ruled him ineligible and denied his request for reinstatement after he placed thousands of bets on college and professional sports, including on his own team, during his career. Sorsby's attorneys asked for a decision by June 15 so that Sorsby can decide on entering the NFL supplemental draft by June 22.

«I don't think we're in a position to want to go down that road,» Monken said Monday when asked about Sorsby. «That's my opinion, that's not [general manager Andrew Berry's]. I like the quarterbacks that we have. I think that's a slippery slope when you go down that, irrespective of talent, right? In terms of the situation he's [put] himself in, we all know what that is. He put himself in that situation. And we've seen in other sports with players that have been banned for life from playing in professional sports.

»But from my end of it, kind of a tough angle to go down that road and think that's going to be your franchise quarterback if he's ever eligible to even play in the NFL."

On Tuesday, Berry took less of a hard-line stance when asked about Sorsby.

«No different than we do every year,» Berry said. «We'll do the work on all the prospects, and then we'll make the appropriate decision for the organization.»

Sorsby was ESPN's No. 1-ranked transfer in January after throwing for 7,208 yards and scoring 82 total touchdowns over his four seasons at Cincinnati and Indiana.

ESPN's Max Olson contributed to