This is beginning to get ugly. The NFL is reportedly investigating an unnamed Indianapolis Colts player for “pervasive” wagering, including bets involving the Colts. We’ve gone from players throwing betting on other teams and sports to Pete Rose territory reasonably quickly. This will get ugly before it gets better if this investigation finds that this is true.
Sports Handle’s Matt Rybaltowski reported that a source informed him of the NFL’s investigation. Here’s the list of the information that Rybaltowski received:
“While the new allegations around the Colts appear to be “isolated to one player,” there is evidence the Colts player placed hundreds of wagers, the source told Sports Handle on the condition of anonymity. At least some of the wagers, the source told Sports Handle on Sunday, were placed on the Colts.”
We’re months removed from Calvin Ridley being reinstated by the NFL after serving a season-long suspension for placing bets on NFL games. Ridley placed the bets while he was away from the Atlanta Falcons in 2021. We also saw Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams and four other players suspended for between six games and indefinitely at the end of April. Williams placed bets on college football games inside of a team facility.
Stanley Berryhill and Jameson Williams of the Lions were suspended for the team’s first six regular season games of the 2023 season. The Detroit Lions have released Quintez Cephus and C.J. Moore following the league’s decision to suspend the two indefinitely in April.
During Memorial Day weekend, The Athletic released a report stating that the league is currently conducting an investigation on a player from the Lions’ 2022 roster for a potential gambling violation.
Still, if accurate, this Colts report will be the biggest bombshell of the recent string of players violating the NFL’s gambling policy.
According to Rybaltowski’s report, the player in question is still on the Colts’ roster. Additionally, the Indiana Gaming Commission is investigating the claims as well:
The Colts player appears to have made the wagers through an account opened by an acquaintance, the source noted. Sports Handle has not been able to independently verify if the player placed any wagers on his team during the 2022 NFL season.
Although the player is not considered a superstar, an ardent NFL fan has probably heard of him, according to the source. Most of the wagering occurred during 2022, with some of it extending into 2023. The player is still on the Colts’ roster, the source revealed.
Indiana Gaming Commission Deputy Director Jenny Reske told Sports Handle Monday that the IGC is looking into the potential violations by the Colts player.
“I can confirm that we have received information pertaining to this matter and we are following developments,” Reske said. “The IGC is not the lead agency because it involves violations of league policy. We will, however, continue to review information as it emerges to see if it requires any regulatory action.”
You can read the full report on the investigation into the unnamed Colts player here:
This is a developing story and we will have more thoughts on this shortly.