I think most people will agree with me when I say professional athletes shouldn’t be allowed to bet on their own sports. If they could, they’d risk jeopardizing the integrity of the leagues they play for. That’s why serious consequences are in place for when they do.
Now, as far as what those consequences should be, that’s where things get a little more subjective.
The NFL’s punishment for players is an indefinite suspension that lasts for at least a full season, with the latest example being Denver Broncos defensive end Eyioma Uwazurike, who on Monday became the 10th player suspended since April.
His head coach thinks the bans are too harsh.
“Shame on us,” Sean Payton said Tuesday in an interview with USA TODAY Sports’ Jarrett Bell. “And we’re going to send them home for a year, where they can’t be around. The idea that you just go away, shame on us.”
It’s a strong stance by Payton, who knows a thing or two about suspensions after missing the 2012 season over the Bountygate scandal. He said the conditions of that ban prevented him from having contact with coaches, staff, players or league office personnel. Similar conditions for gambling violations make him question the league’s intent.
“The question is, ‘What’s the intent of the punishment?’ I know what [Roger Goodell’s] intent was (for me). Do we want these young men to still have a chance to learn from their mistakes?” Payton asked.
He believes keeping players away from the team that long makes it tougher to give them the support they might need.
“Part of that (support) is finding out, ‘Hey, what is the protocol? What is allowed?’ “ Payton said. “Do we want to see these guys return?”
And that gets to the root of it. The league doesn’t appear to concern itself with whether players return or not — even though many of the busted players were on the fringe of rosters and ended up getting cut. The NFL’s goal is to protect the shield from the perception of nefarious gambling activity. There’s probably a middle ground where it can do just that while not wrecking a player’s career before it can get started, but the league has gone the route of the hammer.
Payton’s concern is warranted given how unclear the NFL’s policy apparently has been to this point. All of the recent suspensions stem from violations that occurred before the NFL came up with a list of “key points” to emphasize this offseason — an admittance of needing clarity. And even after these latest efforts to reinforce the policy, Payton still called the material handed down by the league “awful.” He had Broncos VP of football operations and compliance Mark Thewes create a streamlined version for players and staff.
Bottomline, legal betting in the U.S. is still relatively new, and players are adjusting just like leagues are. The NCAA just updated its gambling policy to make the punishment for violators less harsh, so the NFL could certainly do the same. Players have been suspended fewer games for a lot worse.