Other sports have had gambling issues this year. So far, the NFL has not.
Via David Purdum of ESPN.com, the league has not suspended a player under the gambling policy in more than a year. During that same window, both baseball and basketball have dealt with significant scandals, some of which culminated in lifetime banishments.
The NFL, in comments to Purdum, touted its efforts to be proactive when it comes to spotting and preventing gambling issues.
NFL senior V.P. of security Cathy Lanier explained that the league assigned an “integrity representative” to each team, a practice that dates back to 2018. The integrity representatives “roam stadiums from the sidelines to the press box during games,” looking for “fair competition issues.”
“They’re looking for anything that is an anomaly, anything that stands out, anything that might raise concerns,” Lanier said.
The fact that no players have been suspended for gambling doesn’t necessarily mean players aren’t violating the policy. It might mean that they’re being smarter about how and where and when they place wagers — especially since family members aren’t bound by the policy.
The violations to date have arisen from players placing legal wagers on pro football and/or betting on other sports while at work or traveling for work. One significant issue that has yet to become a scandal relates to the misuse of inside information, and players exiting games early in order to manipulate the unders on their various prop bets. The possibility also lingers for game officials, players, and/or coaches to be involved in efforts to fix outcomes of games.
There’s a massive donut hole when it comes to player health information. Players are allowed to share their true status with family members. Beyond that, the league is taking a leap of faith that the family members won’t share, sell, and/or act on that information.
"[We’re] just reminding them to protect non-public inside information that they have,” NFL head of compliance Sabrina Perel told Purdum. “And that while it’s OK to tell a family member about your own condition, you still have to trust that those that are close to them won’t gamble or share the information.”
So far, the league’s suspensions have come from the lowest of low-hanging fruit, with players using gambling apps in their own names and the sports books who have partnered with the NFL essentially ratting them out. There’s a level of care that players and others can exercise that the league might not have the capacity to detect — especially if the current efforts to do so mainly consist of having someone roaming around the stadium, looking for “anything that stands out.”
If the folks who are trafficking in inside information and/or rigging prop bets and/or games are smart about it, nothing will stand out.