The picture is getting clearer on the NFL’s upcoming suspensions for players violating the league’s gambling policy.
Tennessee Titans starting right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere is being suspended for six games, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, for betting on non-NFL games while at the team facility.
The 23-year-old was one of several NFLers to be handed bans by the league on Thursday, with Colts cornerback Isaiah Rodgers and tight end Rashod Berry earning one-year punishments for betting on NFL games.
Indianapolis quickly cut both players.
Free agent lineman Demetrius Taylor will also have to sit out the 2023 season after the league deemed he bet on NFL games in 2022.
Petit-Frere is adamant he did not bet on any NFL games, but admitted that he placed “NOT NFL related” bets that were “legal under Tennessee law.”
Petit-Frere apologized for his actions in a statement released Thursday.
“I want to apologize to my family, coaches, teammates and the Titans fans,” he wrote. “I have always strived in every stage of my life to follow the rules. Even after attending a league presentation, I was unaware about the specifics around placing bets from a team facility.
“I will do everything in my power to help the team during training camp and will be prepared when I return to the roster during the season.”
The Ohio State product was expected to be the starting right tackle for Tennessee in 2023 after a rookie season in which he started 16 games.
Additionally, the Titans lost the other part of the right side of their line from last season — right guard Nate Davis — after he signed in free agency with the Chicago Bears.
Thursday’s punishments are the latest this offseason.
Already, several Lions players — including first-round pick Jameson Williams — and Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney have been implicated.
Rodgers admitted he was under investigation after reports of an Indianapolis player’s “pervasive” betting.
“I want to take full responsibility for my actions,” Rodgers wrote in a social media post on June 6. “I know I have made mistakes and I am willing to do whatever it takes to repair the situation. The last thing I ever wanted to do was to be a distraction to the Colts organization, my coaches, and my teammates. I’ve let people down that I care about.
“I made an error in judgement and I am going to work hard to make sure that those mistakes are rectified throughout the process. It’s an honor to play in the NFL and I have never taken that lightly. I am very sorry for all of this.”
More suspensions are expected to come for players who violated the league’s gambling policy, with Schefter reporting earlier this week that a “handful” of players will be punished.
