Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended Monday through at least the 2022 season after it was determined that he gambled on games in 2021.
In a press release, the NFL said Ridley bet on games, some involving his own team, using his phone over a period of five days in November after he had been placed on the league’s non-football illness list.
“For decades, gambling on NFL games has been considered among the most significant violations of league policy warranting the most substantial sanction,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a letter to Ridley regarding the suspension.
Ridley responded by taking to Twitter in several posts. “I bet 1500 total I don’t have a gambling problem,” Ridley wrote, adding in another post that he “couldn’t” watch the game at that point.
I bet 1500 total I don’t have a gambling problem
— CALVIN RIDLEY (@CalvinRidley1) March 7, 2022
Ridley, who is 27, revealed Oct. 31 that he was taking a break from football to focus on his mental health, according to CNN. In another post Monday, Ridley said he would “be more healthy” when he came back from his suspension.
Although Goodell praised Ridley for “promptly reporting for an interview, and for admitting” what he had done, the commissioner said the league had to maintain certain standards.
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“There is nothing more fundamental to the NFL’s success — and to the reputation of everyone associated with our league — than upholding the integrity of the game,” Goodell said.
Goodell told Ridley that ensuring the integrity of football was the duty of “every player, coach, owner, game official, and anyone else employed in the league,” adding that “your actions put the integrity of the game at risk, threatened to damage public confidence in professional football, and potentially undermined the reputations of your fellow players throughout the NFL.”
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After conducting an investigation surrounding Ridley’s gambling, the NFL said it found that “no inside information” was used to compromise any of the games. Additionally, there was no evidence to show that “coaches, staff, teammates, or other players” knew of Ridley’s gambling efforts, the NFL added.
The Falcons released a statement acknowledging that Ridley had been suspended, adding that the team would be “moving forward” with preparing for the 2022 season.
