Isaiah Rodgers and Rashod Berry of the Indianapolis Colts along with free agent Demetrius Taylor received indefinite suspensions through at least this season for betting on NFL games in 2022. They won't be able to seek reinstatement until the 2023 season ends.
Tennessee Titans right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere was suspended for the first six games of the 2023 season for betting on non-NFL sports at the team's facility. He is eligible to participate in all offseason and preseason activities, including preseason games.
“We believe in Nick and know that he has deep respect for the integrity of the game and our organization,” the Titans said in a statement. "We will continue to emphasize to our players the importance of understanding and adhering to league rules and policies.”
The NFL’s gambling policy bars players, coaches and league and team officials from betting on NFL games, placing bets at team facilities or team hotels or having someone else place a bet for them, among other restrictions.
With many states legalizing sports books specifically and gambling in general, leagues such as the NFL must increasingly contend with gambling infractions.
The Lions released three players — receivers Quintez Cephus and Stanley Berryhill and safety C.J. Moore. Cephus and Moore were suspended indefinitely for betting on NFL games while Berryhill and receiver Jameson Williams each drew six-game suspensions for betting on non-NFL games.
Williams, the No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 draft, remains on Detroit’s roster.
Washington Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney also received an indefinite suspension in April for betting on NFL games, and in 2022 the NFL gave then-Atlanta Falcons receiver Calvin Ridley a season-long suspension for betting. He was reinstated in March and now plays for Jacksonville.
Losing Rodgers is a big blow to a Colts secondary already under reconstruction. He was projected to be a starter this season, his fourth in the NFL, and the former UMass star was expected to add a veteran voice in a young position room.
The loss of Petit-Frere even for six games hurts the Titans. He was the only starter returning from last year’s starting offensive line at the same position.
Petit-Frere released a statement to ESPN that he shared on social media and apologized to the Titans and his family. He also made clear his betting did not involve the NFL and was legal under Tennessee law.
“It is only being sanctioned because it occurred at the Titans facility ...," Petit-Frere said in his statement. "I have always strived in every stage of my life to follow the rules. Even after attending a league presentation, I was unaware about the specifics around placing bets from a team facility.”
The 6-foot-5, 315-pound Petit-Frere was Tennessee’s third-round pick last year out of Ohio State, and he beat out Dillon Radunz for the starting job at right tackle. Petit-Frere started all 16 games as a rookie, helping block for the NFL’s second-leading rusher in Derrick Henry.
New general manager Ran Carthon rebuilt the offensive line this offseason, signing Andre Dillard from Philadelphia as hopefully the Titans’ new left tackle and Daniel Brunskill from the 49ers to be the right guard. He drafted Peter Skoronski with their first-round pick, and he’s likely starting at left guard.
After two incredibly close games, the Super Bowl matchup is set. On February 13th, at the SoFi stadium in Inglewood, California, the Los Angeles Rams will face off in their home stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals. After 54 Super Bowls where a home team never hosted the game on its field, it will now happen for the second year in a row, after Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucs last year. Speaking of Brady, ESPN dropped a bombshell of a headline Saturday that Tom Brady was set to retire after 22 seasons and seven rings. To discuss all the latest NFL news, Anthony Tall, President of Miracle Sports Group, joins Cheddar News.
In January alone, the gaming sector has seen three major acquisitions. Yesterday, Sony added to the flurry of M&A activity in the gaming space, snatching up game developer 'Bungie' for $3.6 billion dollars. Renee Gittins, executive director at the International Gaming Developers Association, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
NFL legend Tom Brady says he is done playing football after 22 seasons. Cheddar News speaks with Trey Wingo, Chief NFL Analyst at Pro Football Network, about Brady announcing his retirement.
Greg Bishop, Senior Writer for Sports Illustrated, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says Tom Brady's legacy is all about 'progress' and expects the future Hall of Famer to bolster his entrepreneurial ventures following his retirement.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America has been a driving force for youth mentorship since 1904. The nonprofit organization is launching its annual Big Draft campaign this month in partnership with the NFL, and Artis Stevens, the first Black CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, joined Cheddar to discuss the push for adding more "Bigs" as mentors on his one-year anniversary leading the non-profit organization. "While the NFL is recruiting and drafting more players, they're also helping us to draft more mentors and, particularly, men all the way from across February to all the way to April of this year," Stevens explained.
On this episode of Cheddar Reveals, Jim Riordan, Director of the MBA Sport Management program at Florida Atlantic University, breaks down the successes, failures, and chaos of the first seven months of the Name, Image, Likeness policy in college athletics; Adi Kunalic, President of Opendorse, discusses the first-ever association-wide deal in college athletics between Opendorse and the NAIA, and how Opendorse is marketing and educating student-athletes to make the most of their NIL deal potential; Cheddar gets a look at Curiosity Stream's 'Predicting a Pro'.
Jim Riordan, Director of the MBA Sport Management program at Florida Atlantic University, joins Cheddar Reveals to break down the successes, failures, and chaos of the first seven months of the Name, Image, Likeness policy in college athletics.
Adi Kunalic, President of Opendorse, joins Cheddar Reveals to discuss the first-ever association-wide deal in college athletics between Opendorse and the NAIA, and how Opendorse is marketing and educating student-athletes to make the most of their NIL deal potential.
With the Beijing Winter Olympics set to get underway on Friday, Dan Wolken, a national columnist for USA Today, joined Cheddar News to break down the big storylines as the pandemic and international conflicts threaten to cast a cloud over the event that is aspirationally seen as a beacon of international cooperation. Wolken noted specific issues over cybersecurity for visiting athletes and disputes over human rights leading to a diplomatic boycott have been making waves even before the opening ceremony. "So you've got sort of these barbs going back and forth already between the Americans and the Chinese, and things haven't even started yet," he said. "We don't even know what's going to happen once the games start and people actually start winning medals."
