Yes, legalized gambling will bring more corruption to sport. And it creates a greater obligation by leagues and teams to eliminate all avenues for it.
The NFL’s injury reporting system continues to be deeply flawed. The bare-bones requirements, even when a team fully complies, create plenty of wiggle room for gamesmanship. The fact that teams routinely ignore those minimum obligations makes the problem even more significant — especially since the league refuses to do anything about it.
The ability of teams to hide injury information creates a very real vein of inside information, which can be used or sold by those who know the truth about a player’s health. And it seems as if teams are indeed hiding injury information.
Consider the recent exchange between Eagles coach Nick Sirianni and reporters regarding quarterback Jalen Hurts. Here’s the full thing, from the transcript provided by the team:
Q. We haven’t really seen QB Jalen Hurts be held back for load management before. What was behind that on Wednesday?
A: Yeah, he was dealing with — it was on the injury report, dealing with the ankle. You know, just making sure we’re precautious with everything.
Q. QB Jalen Hurts wasn’t on with an ankle.
A: What was that? . . . That was a rest, yeah. Sorry. . . . I thought you were talking about somebody else.
Q. Is QB Jalen Hurts dealing with an ankle problem?
A: No, rest.
Insert here the sound of toothpaste being scraped off the sink and shoved back into the tube.
Hurts is the starting quarterback. He’s the most important player on the team. When it comes to the health of a player like Hurts, he doesn’t get confused with someone else.
If Sirianni wasn’t simply misspeaking (and I believe he wasn’t), it wouldn’t be a surprise. Last year, Hurts was by all appearances and multiple reports dealing with a knee issue. The Eagles consistently failed to disclose it. With no consequence or, as far as anyone knows, scrutiny from the league.
The league doesn’t want to explore those issues. Because the league doesn’t want to have to disclose to the world that teams are taking liberties with injury reports.
While it remains to be seen whether the new Republican-controlled government will skew toward anti-regulation or anti-vice when it comes to sports betting, the judicial system provides an alternative avenue for accountability. Whether through the criminal or civil branch, it’s just a matter of time before someone ends up being accused of violating state and/or federal laws aimed at protecting consumers against fraudulent schemes that flow from hiding injuries, and at punishing those who use that information for ill-gotten gains.
