Betting on Sports Betting – What the Calvin Ridley News Means for the Rest of American Pro Leagues

The big news in the sports world on Monday was that Atlanta Falcons star wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for at least the 2022 NFL season for betting on games.

Ridley, who had taken a mental health leave of absence from the team on October 31st, was found to have bet on “multi-legged parlay bets involving 3, 5 and 8 games that included the Falcons to win, per source. Investigation determined there was no involvement from any team players, coach etc. placed via his mobile device out of state,” according to Adam Schefter.

The wide receiver went to Twitter trying to add context to the situation, saying that he, “bet 1500 total[.] I don’t have gambling problem“.

There has been – to no surprise – plenty of banter on the bird app about whether the NFL’s punishment for Ridley is too harsh, if the league is hypocritical, and if players should actually be allowed to place wagers on sports.

I don’t want to get into the mud on all of that, but the NFL did what they had to do in order to keep some integrity in their sport – for now. With the legalization of sports gambling across the country, this is going to be a very slippery slope for years to come across all of American professional sports.

You can actually bet on what league will suspend a player next. BetOnline.ag posted the below odds yesterday:

Next League to Suspend a Player for Gambling

NBA +150

NHL +200

MLB +250

NFL +450

The NBA has some of the most liberal rules for their players across all of pro sports – but I still don’t think they would tolerate sports betting of any kind.

Evander Kane, an NHL hockey player for the Edmonton Oilers, was accused of sports betting by his wife back in July of 2021. However, after a thorough investigation by the league, they found no evidence of this happening.

The MLB has made an example out of Pete Rose – effectively banishing him from the sport. I have a hard time believing an MLB player is going to risk this to make a few bucks trying to bet on something like the home run derby champion.

The NFL has suspended five players in their history for sports gambling, two of which have been in the past three years:

The NFL at +450 could be the best one to take, and you can bet on who the next person will be using BetOnline. Here are their odds:

Next NFL Personnel to be Suspended for Gambling

Antonio Brown +350

Odell Beckham Jr. +500

Deshaun Watson +650

Jameis Winston +700

Sammy Watkins +800

Robert Kraft +800

Jon Gruden +900

Richard Sherman +1000

Dan Snyder +1200

Darren Waller +1600

Rob Gronkowski +1800

DeSean Jackson +2500

Cam Newton +2500

Jerry Jones +2500

Aaron Rodgers +3300

Jim Irsay +3300

Kliff Kingsbury +3300

Tom Brady +5000

Sean McVay +5000

Brian Flores +6600

One thing that stands out to me here: what the heck does BetOnline know about Sammy Watkins?! That is by far the most random person on this list – and he has the fourth shortest odds (+800) behind only AB, OBJ, Deshaun Watson and Jameis Winston.

There’s really no true insight into this bet, so taking the long shots – specifically the owners like Jerry Jones (+2500), and Jim Irsay (+3300), would be the best way to play this one. The league is making an example out of Ridley, so I doubt another player will take this chance for a while.

With sports betting continuing to remain at the forefront, it will be interesting to see where the rest of professional sports leagues go from here.

Make sure to follow Mike on Twitter @mikekadlick, and follow @PatriotsCLNS for the latest up-to-date Patriots news!

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Mike Kadlick

Mike is a Patriots reporter with experience in radio, podcasting, and writing. Follow him on Twitter @mikekadlick.