Fernando Mendoza Brendan Sorsby
Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images, USA Today
The Texas Tech-Brendan Sorsby saga came to an end with Sorsby and the Red Raiders agreeing to mutually part ways after a drawn-out legal and PR battle following an NCAA gambling probe. Sorsby has since declared for the NFL’s supplemental draft, leading to speculation on which franchise is the bets fit for the young quarterback.
Wherever he lands, ESPN’s Jordan Rodgers believes he can have an even better professional career than Fernando Mendoza, the Las Vegas Raiders’ number one overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft
“Yeah, I think he’s got a higher ceiling than Mendoza and Simpson,” Rodgers said. “I don’t mean that he’s a better player now. Both of those guys were drafted because their floor is extremely high. They are pro-ready. But from a, a pure talent standpoint, arm ability and athletic ability, he’s got a higher ceiling now. Mike T mentioned he’s got some things he’s got to clean up, and I think he will.
“He’s got a higher ceiling than Mendoza and Simpson.”
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) June 22, 2026
“But if you drafted— you’re Arizona, you drafted Carson Beck, the Steelers who drafted Drew Aller, and the Jets who drafted Cade Klubnik— he’s better than all those guys. Get a second or third round pick, take him, develop him. He can be a franchise guy. Those three teams haven’t found their quarterback yet. They got a chance to do so in the supplemental draft.”
“You need to be the most competitive.”
Still, Sorsby will be hard-pressed to develop faster than Mendoza, who revealed that NFL legend Tom Brady, who is in the Raiders ownership group, has been mentoring him personally.
“I usually like to keep the talks between Tom and me private. But I do think what he said as a quarterback is you need to be the most everything,” Mendoza said on the Raiders’ official YouTube channel.
“You need to be the most competitive. You need to be the most leader — you have to have the most leadership. You need to be the toughest, mentally and physically. You’ve got to embody all these things and lead by example before getting the respect from your teammates in order to lead effectively. That really resonated with me.”
Sorsby is still awaiting approval for his application to the NFL’s supplemental draft.