Report: NFL player suspended after placing $1,000 prop bet

Reports surfaced after his suspension that Rodgers won a prop bet on the over/under of an unspecified teammate's rushing total. (Whether he bet the over or under is unclear). But regardless of how much he won, it's nowhere near the $2,542,620 he earned over his first three seasons in the NFL.

The Colts cut Rodgers after the league handed down his suspension.

Rodgers appeared in 45 games over his first three seasons with 10 starts. He had his best season in 2021 when he had three interceptions and seven pass deflections.

His suspension was one of four the NFL announced on Thursday. Teammate Rashod Berry was also suspended, as were free agent Demetrius Taylor and Titans offensive tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere. Rodgers, Berry and Taylor received indefinite suspensions, while Petit-Frere will sit out the first six games of the 2023 season.

As players grapple with sports gambling becoming mainstream, several have been suspended for violating league policy.

Calvin Ridley was suspended indefinitely last year after betting on games while a member of the Falcons in 2021 and was reinstated in March 2023. Earlier this offseason, four Lions players — safety C.J. Moore and receivers Jameson Williams, Quintez Cephus and Stanley Berryhill — and Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney were suspended for sports betting.

At this point, there isn't much room for sympathy for players willfully being ignorant about the league's stance on gambling. The league has made it as clear as possible that players aren't allowed to bet on the NFL, yet somehow not everyone received the message.

Maybe next time someone feels the urge to gamble, they just won't. But if the temptation is too powerful, they might as well bet more than $1,000 so that if it hits, they'll at least have some money to hold them over while they're out of the league.