Up to date Feb. 1, 2024: Isaiah Rodgers stated that the bets positioned on the Indianapolis Colts have been positioned utilizing his account — however have been made for others and never himself.
In an interview with ESPN, the suspended CB stated the bets have been positioned for individuals who lived in states the place sports activities playing was unlawful.
“Simply making an attempt to assist family and friends out, simply understanding that it wasn’t authorized on the time in Florida and it was in Indiana,” Rodgers instructed the Worldwide Chief.
He declined to call the people, however added, “On the finish of the day I knew the foundations, I wasn’t purported to do it and I obtained to take what comes with it.”
The NFL and the Indianapolis Colts had no alternative. The e-book needed to be thrown at Isaiah Rodgers.
On Thursday the NFL unrolled a scroll and introduced suspensions of a number of gamers for playing violations. Two gamers from the Colts have been suspended for at minimal a complete season, Rodgers and Rashod Berry. The Colts introduced that each gamers have been waived.
What Rodgers is accused of is at finest galactically silly, and at worse, indicators of an issue. When the story first broke that he was beneath investigation, he was accused of utilizing an account beneath an affiliate’s identify to position a whole bunch of sports activities wagers that included Colts’ video games.
Rodgers inserting a single guess on the Colts, or any NFL group, beneath another person’s account signifies conspiracy. Additional reporting from ESPN’s David Purdham revealed that one of many wagers was a $1,000 over/beneath on speeding yards for a Colts working again.
The NFL is a morally doubtful establishment. The league hosts occasions that mangle the our bodies of members and is scientifically confirmed to trigger head trauma. For many of the NFL’s existence, members weren’t correctly warned in regards to the pervasive danger of head trauma, which resulted in a lawsuit being settled for greater than $800 million.
On this violent career, qualifying gamers solely obtain healthcare for a most of 5 years after the completion of their careers. League possession is consistently battling with the gamers to make sure that they revenue probably the most from this bloodsport. The income break up has gone from 50/50 to 53/47 in favor of possession. The results of the rookie wage scale is that high quality veteran gamers get launched in favor of gamers on rookie contracts who might not be as productive, however value considerably much less cash.
Linking up with the sports activities books is definitely ethically questionable, however the NFL places on 21 weeks of human automotive crashes each week and tries with all of its may to keep away from paying for the damages. If the NFL needs to usher in some more money by way of playing that’s the least of the league’s moral breaches.
The one integrity that the NFL has is the competitors on the sphere. A breach there may be the one one that may value league possession cash. It needs to be protected in any respect prices. Rodgers was not solely on an NFL roster, however was a contributing place participant. He was a major a part of the Colts’ defensive sport plan, and there’s a good probability that he by no means performs one other down within the NFL.
NFL gamers have by no means been allowed to wager on video games within the league through which they play. The NFL wanting to extend income by going into enterprise with the sports activities books in the end advantages the gamers as effectively. They could not get as a lot cash from it as they need to, however they nonetheless get fairly a bit.
With one of many NFL’s morally questionable choices truly benefiting them, all gamers should do is to by no means guess on this specific sport, and by no means place a wager in a facility or room that’s paid for by an NFL franchise. Additionally, don’t enter sports activities books through the season.
I personally assume not having the ability to wager on different sports activities whereas at group amenities or on highway journeys is a bit a lot, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a straightforward rule to observe. If the adrenaline junkies must gamble they’ve one another to play playing cards with, and blackjack tables throughout the nation.
For these that may’t observe the foundations, they’ll find yourself like Rodgers, Berry, and others. As a result of there is no such thing as a manner that the NFL goes to hit the brakes on the sports activities betting Brinks Truck on the grounds of hypocrisy.