One would think that after the Calvin Ridley scandal where the former Falcons receiver found himself suspended for a full season by the NFL for betting on games, players would think twice before violating the league’s gambling policy.
Apparently not, though. In some pretty shocking news, five NFL players have been suspended for violating the NFL’s gambling policy, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Among the names included were four players from the Detroit Lions — CJ Moore, Quintez Cephus, Jameson Willams and Stanley Berryhill. Moore and Cephus have been suspended indefinitely by the league, while Williams and Berryhill are facing six-game suspensions.
The difference in punishment comes from the distinct rules they individually violated. We can find the rules in this copy of the NFL’s gambling policy from 2018.
Cephus and Moore violated the league’s rule against betting on football games, which is the first rule under the gambling violations section.
Betting on Football: All NFL Personnel are prohibited from placing, soliciting, or facilitating any bet, whether directly or indirectly through a third-party, on any NFL game, practice or other event. This includes betting on game outcome, statistics, score, performance of any individual participant, or any other kind of “proposition bet” on which wagering is offered.
Neither players nor league personnel are allowed to bet on NFL games.
Williams and Berryhill placed mobile bets in a team facility, according to reporting from the Detroit Free Press. That’s a violation of rule 6 in the gambling violations section.
Gambling in the Workplace: NFL Personnel shall not engage in any form of gambling while in any Club or League setting including, without limitation, locker rooms, practice or office facilities, team buses, trains, flights, or hotels, or while traveling on Club or League business. For clarity, playing cards or other casino-type games is permitted as long as nothing of value is wagered.
It’s all pretty cut and dry when you get down to it. It’s a shame this has happened again. Hopefully, players learn from these mistakes.