On Tuesday, the NFL [made a major announcement](https://Broncos would have missed out on one of best RBs in team history without supplemental draft) that it has decided not to hold a supplemental draft this year. The news was big due to the ongoing situation with former Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby.
Sorsby will now have to weigh his options, which could include filing a lawsuit against the league or playing professionally in another league. One thing is for sure: he won't play in the NFL in 2026. He can, however, enter the 2027 NFL Draft.
It's tough news for Sorsby and his supporters, but talk of the supplemental draft begs the question: Have the Denver Broncos ever taken a player in a supplemental draft? The answer is yes, one time.
The NFL has held supplemental drafts periodically over the years, designed as another way for players facing adversity— such as disciplinary reasons or simply not declaring for the draft in time — to be selected by a team to play in the league. The NFL last held a supplemental draft in 2023, though no players were selected. Current Dallas Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson was the last player selected in a supplemental draft. That choice was made by the Arizona Cardinals, who gave up a fifth-round pick for him.
In 1989, five players were selected in the supplemental draft. One of those picks was made by the Denver Broncos, who forfeited a first-round pick in 1990 to select Alabama running back Bobby Humphrey. To this day, Humphrey is the only Alabama player ever selected in the supplemental draft.
As Humphrey told Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette in April 2025, he didn't want to do any of the pre-draft stuff because he wasn't ready to work out. He entered the supplemental draft and landed in a great spot in Denver.
As a rookie, Humphrey rushed for 1,151 yards and seven touchdowns. He proved that was no fluke the following year, gaining 1,202 yards on the ground and scoring another seven times before being selected to the 1990 Pro Bowl roster.
But that following offseason, he made the ill-fated choice to hold out for more money, and that essentially railroaded his career in Denver. Sadly, it's what many Broncos fans remember him for more than anything he did on the field.
Humphrey had two magical seasons running the ball for the Broncos. He would play in just four games for the team in 1991 and was traded to the Miami Dolphins in 1992. He never came close to matching the success he had in Denver and was out of the league following that season.
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Humphrey had some off-field issues following his career before becoming head coach of the Birmingham Steeldogs, a team in AF2, a developmental league for the former Arena Football League. His son, Marlon, currently plays cornerback for the Baltimore Ravens.
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