NFL investigating 5th Detroit Lions player for gambling: report
The NFL is investigating whether a fifth player from the Detroit Lions violated the league’s gambling policy. The Athletic reported the news on Friday.
However, the sports site did not name the player because the “investigation is ongoing.” The Athletic, in describing the player, said he did not have a “prominent role” on last year’s team. Nor has the league interviewed the player about his alleged participation in gambling. Meanwhile, ESPN reported earlier this week that there’s a second “wave” of gambling investigations coming from the NFL.
It’s safe to say that league gambling investigations have greatly impacted the Lions more than any other team in the NFL.
A week before last month’s draft, the NFL announced that five players from two teams were being suspended for gambling. Four of them played for the Lions. The biggest name was receiver Jameson Williams, the team’s top draft pick from 2022. He received a suspension of six games. So did fellow receiver Stanley Berryhill. Meanwhile, the league suspended safety CJ Moore and receiver Quintez Cephus indefinitely. That means both players must miss at least one season. The Lions cut both Moore and Cephus that day. Earlier this month, Detroit then waived Berryhill.
The NFL said that Moore and Cephus received the longer penalties because each wagered on league games. But Williams and Berryhill gambled on non-NFL games. The concern was that each player placed the bets while at the Lions office complex. The league policy also says no wagers can be placed from league or team facilities. And it goes even further, stating that players can’t place wagers while on team road trips. This counts team hotels, planes and buses.
The league also gave Washington Commanders defensive lineman Shaka Toney an indefinite suspension for betting on NFL games.
“It’s unfortunate and a little disappointed for the young man,” Washington coach Ron Rivera told reporters earlier this month. “I mean, he’s a guy that really came on for us last year at the end of the season and with what’s going on, obviously it’s something that he’s dealing with on his own with his agent and the league. So for us, we’ve just gotta be able to move forward and hopefully in a year’s time, we’ll see what happens.”
After the league announced the punishments, the NFLPA sent a memo to all registered agents. The memo stressed the need to tell clients to never open a gambling app while on team time.
Williams is participating in Lions OTAs. He’ll also be allowed at training camps and he can play in preseason games. But he can’t play in the first six games.
“Look, he knows,” said Lions coach Dan Campbell. “I mean, he’s gotten it from everybody. And so, look, it happened. It’s an emphasis in the league right now. It’s a big thing. Our players know. We’ve tried to hammer it home. Certainly we did after that point and a few more times and we’ll just keep doing it. But listen, it’s happening. The suspension is happening, and so now what do we do to move forward? You’re not going to be here, so in the meantime, let’s get the most work we can out of you.”