Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes believes that sports gambling has affected the behavior of some sports fans, and not for the better.
Against the backdrop of the wave of scandals involving sports fixing and illegal gambling that has plagued the other major American sports leagues, Mahomes was asked during a press conference on Wednesday about the actions of the NFL and the NFL Players’ Association to prevent such controversies in their own league.
While Mahomes answered that question, he also elaborated on the impact he believes gambling has had on some fans.
“With the betting stuff, how much has the NBA and MLB stuff been present in your mind, and do you feel like the safeguards are all in place well in the NFL?” a reporter asked.
“I mean, they let us know. I mean, the NFL and NFLPA kind of tell us all the different rules that that you can and can’t do,” Mahomes said. “I just stay away, stay away from it, just because I don’t want to put myself in that position. I mean, that’s something that, your life is so great, why mess with it? And so, it does get, I think, more than anything, to me, it gets weird sometimes when you have fans talking about it. Just because, like, you’re just trying to go out there and live your life and play the game, and sometimes they get really attached even more than the regular fan, because they have money on the line.
“And so, from me to them, I would just say, don’t do anything that you can’t recuperate or live without. And so, it’s a crazy world we live in these days, seeing all this stuff happen. But I think you just focus on the football and focus on the sport that you love and why you’re here, and you don’t have to worry about other stuff.”
Mahomes’ answer makes sense. Most professional athletes probably agree that it’s best to avoid wagering on games. However, with the changes the NCAA is implementing to make gambling legal for collegiate athletes, that’s going to be a hard habit to break for many former student-athletes when they get to the pros.
As far as the “attached” fans whose gambling proclivities make them more vocal than others, athletes would be wise to invest more of their considerable wealth in enhanced security, especially since organized burglary rings have already demonstrated the ability of determined criminals to invade the homes of pro athletes.
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