During an appearance on “The Pivot” podcast, wide receiver Malik Nabers revealed he and his former quarterback Jayden Daniels made a wager on who will win the 2024 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Daniels confirmed the $10,000 bet existed in an interview on the “All Facts No Brakes” podcast on Wednesday.
Now, the bet is off between the former LSU teammates. During a press conference on Saturday, Daniels pulled back the curtain on the pair’s decision to cancel the friendly wager.
“We were uneducated on the gambling policy in the NFL,” Daniels said. “We learned about it last night. Me and him had a conversation and we canceled the bet. Obviously, we don’t want to get in trouble with anything. We’re just focused on being the best players for our respective teams.”
Nabers confirmed Daniels story on Friday.
“I’m educated now that I got here about sports betting and gambling,” Nabers said. “We’re calling the bet off. There is no bet now. It was just another brother pushing another brother to try to get to success. That is all it was.”
The pair has found no shortage of success together in the past. Daniels was spectacular in the 2023 campaign, completing 236-of-327 passes for 3,812 yards and 40 touchdowns with just four interceptions. He became the first LSU Tiger to win the Heisman Trophy since Joe Burrow brought home the hardware in 2019.
Of course, every great quarterback needs a reliable receiver. Nabers played that role perfectly, tallying 89 receptions for 1,569 yards and 14 TDs in his final season as a Tiger.
The Washington Commanders selected Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and the New York Giants picked up Nabers only four picks later. Daniels and Nabers were wisely not willing to risk their success for a silly wager.
What do the NFL rules say about the wager?
The league’s policy states that NFL personnel are prohibited from “placing, soliciting or facilitating any bet, whether directly or through a third party,” on any NFL game, practice or other league event, such as the draft or combine.
While the NFL’s 2022 gambling policy stated that gambling includes “private wagers between teammates, family and friends, or others,” the 2023 policy did not. Nonetheless, Daniels and Nabers are understandably not willing to wade into the gray area.
After all, money will soon be the least of their concerns. Per Spotrac, Jayden Daniels is expected to sign a fully-guaranteed four-year deal worth $37.7 million, including a $24.2 million signing bonus and a fifth-year option in 2028.
Following closely behind, Malik Nabers is expected to sign a four-year $29.2 million with an $18 million signing bonus.
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