"It's getting worse": Ravens' Marlon Humphrey takes issue with sports bettors blaming players
Marlon Humphrey had plenty of reasons to celebrate the Ravens' dominating 41-10 win against the Denver Broncos on Sunday after losing to the Cleveland Browns in Week 8. However, speaking in a clip on the "Punch Line Podcast" that was posted Monday morning, Ravens cornerback Humphrey vented on a very different topic.
The Baltimore Ravens cornerback took umbrage with how gambling was changing what fans wanted from the players, putting them in a lose-lose situation. He's a cornerback but used a wide receiver stat line as an example.
"It's getting worse because of gambling and all that stuff. Because 'you made me lose my parlay.' I did 120 yards, did I score a touchdown? No, but I had 120 and you're talking about, 'I made you lose your parlay.'
"I played a great game today. So apparently someone bet on me to have an interception against Tampa Bay, I got them $70. I was like, 'Would [I] have been receiving a cuss-out text message if I didn't?'"
Of course, while the rise of legalized gambling is a relatively new phenomenon, fantasy football has led fans to have this kind of reaction for several decades. Every week in the NFL, there are stories of football players who win their game, but ruin a fantasy manager's game.
As such, no matter how well a team does, the players set themselves up for criticism.
Marlon Humphrey looking to build on already career-best interception numbers
The Ravens cornerback didn't snag an interception in the win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday, but his season-long stat line didn't exactly need it. Already totaling four interceptions on the year, Humphrey has set a career-best mark in the category.
At his current pace, Lamar Jackson's top cornerback is on pace to double the mark. If he pulls it off, he will have nearly tripled his next-best mark of three interceptions.
However, while more interceptions would be desirable, it may also be a goal for him to get on the board in the sack category. Cornerbacks and safeties rarely blitz, but as a defensive trick play, sometimes the defensive coordinator sends the cornerback at a quarterback's blindside, hoping to catch him off guard.
Will Marlon Humphrey's name be called for a sack or an interception next?
If any of the above quotes are used, credit the "Punch Line Podcast" and H/T Sportskeeda.