Jameson Williams of the Lions is one of the NFL players suspended for breaking the gambling policy.

 

Jameson Williams is one of five players, four of whom are Detroit Lions players, who have been suspended by the NFL for breaking the gambling policy of the organization.

The Lions declared Williams and Stanley Berryhill suspended for six games each; the team waived the contracts of safety C.J. Moore and wide receiver Quintez Cephus, who were suspended indefinitely.

Shaka Toney, a defensive end for the Washington Commanders, was also given an indefinite suspension, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

According to Rapoport, Moore, Cephus, and Toney are thought to have wagered on NFL games, while Williams and Berryhill were suspended for placing bets on college sports while at the Lions’ training complex.

The Lions fired multiple employees from different areas last month for breaking the gambling rules, according to ESPN’s Eric Woodyard.

Woodyard pointed out that the terminations had nothing to do with the penalties the league announced on Friday. “The Lions became aware of the NFL’s investigation about a month ago before the league reached a final decision,” said Woodyard.

In the team’s announcement, general manager Brad Holmes provided the following statement:

“We discovered that some of our players had broken the league’s gambling policy following an NFL investigation. These players made decisions that are against league regulations and inconsistent with our organizational principles. We have decided to cut ties with Quintez and C.J. right away. We are dissatisfied with Stanley and Jameson’s decision-making, and we will work with them to make sure they get the seriousness of these infractions and are clear on the league’s standards going forward.”

Through Woodyard, the commanders released a statement regarding Toney’s ban. It said, “Since receiving notice, we have fully cooperated with the NFL’s investigation and support the league’s findings and actions. The NFL League Office should be contacted with any additional inquiries on the subject.”Regarding the NFL’s sentence, Williams’ legal representation released the following statement:

ACL damage forced Williams, who was selected with the 12th overall pick in the previous draft, to miss the first 12 games of his rookie campaign. After coming back, he only touched the ball twice, and on both plays, it was for at least forty yards.

After getting cut off the Arizona Cardinals practice squad, Berryhill signed with the Lions in the middle of the 2022 season. As a rookie, he mostly played on special teams.

In the NFL’s history, this is the sixth occasion that players have faced penalties for gaming. The most recent incidence that occurred before Friday was in March 2022, when Calvin Ridley, an Atlanta Falcons player, was suspended indefinitely for placing bets on NFL games during the 2021 season.

After being dealt to the Jacksonville Jaguars in November 2022, Ridley was completely reinstated by the NFL on March 6 and was able to participate in all team-related activities right away.

Before Ridley’s sentence, the last gambling-related ban was in 2019, when Josh Shaw, a former cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals, bet on many games while visiting Las Vegas with friends.

Shaw misconstrued a 2018 Supreme Court decision that overturned a federal statute banning sports betting, according to Rapoport.

The Lions selected Cephus in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, and he has played in 22 games in the previous three seasons. In 2019, Moore became an undrafted free agent and signed with Detroit. Over his four years in the NFL, he has made 56 appearances.

Toney was chosen by the Commanders in the seventh round of the NFL draft in 2021. As a rookie, he recorded 1.5 sacks and made one start. The former Penn State player made 16 appearances in 2022 games.