Calvin Ridley responds to NFL fan’s parlay plan to recover $20,000,000 for Jaguars in Amit Patel’s FanDuel scandal
The Jacksonville Jaguars stunned the NFL world in the middle of December 2023. As the franchise kept its eyes on the prize in the playoffs hunt, a stunning report emerged out of Jacksonville, detailing a scam to the tune of over $20 million.
Court documents filed in a United States District Court in Jacksonville stated that former Jaguars employee Amit Patel stole over $22 million from the franchise over the course of four years. While the court documents didn't name the Jaguars as the franchise, the team eventually confirmed the validity of his affiliation, alleging that he used his employment to pull off the alleged heist.
Patel, a finance manager with the team, eventually pled guilty to stealing a totoal of $22 million through a virtual credit card system. He then used those funds to bet place bets on FanDuel.
In a more recent development, the team has asked FanDuel to reimburse some of the $20 million stolen by Patel. However, per multiple reports, FanDuel isn't willing to fork over the money.
NFL fan tables bizarre proposal for Calvin Ridley to recover Amit Patel's FanDuel funds
As reports emerged of the franchise reaching out to FanDuel, one fan took it upon himself to solve Jacksonville's problem.
The fan, named Nick, wrote:
"All Calvin Ridley needs to do is cook up a parlay and the Jaguars will get the 20 million back."
Ridley, who has been active on social media, took notice of the tweet and replied:
"Nick lol."
Why was Calvin Ridley suspended by the NFL?
Ridley, of course, is no stranger to cooking up a parlay.
Back in March 2022, the league indefinitely suspended Ridley for betting on NFL games, which was in direct violation of the NFL's laws.
Ridley, who was with the Atlanta Falcons at the time, played just five games the year before, citing mental health reasons. His gambling came to light in the following offseason but he firmly stated that he bet just $1,500 total and stressed that he didn't suffer from a gambling problem.
In March 2022, Lindsay Jones, senior editor at The Ringer, reported that Ridley had placed three parlays, one of which involved betting on the Falcons to win against the Jaguars.
Ridley was eventually traded to the Jaguars at the 2022 trade deadline.