On gambling, a member of Congress wonders "what [the NFL] is trying to hide"

The headline to the item on ESPN.com declares that the NFL has sought federal assistance in addressing the “illicit sports betting market.” The truth suggests a potentially more ominous reality for the NFL.

The article from David Purdum delves into a correspondence exchange that started with Representative Dina Titus (D-Nev.) sending a letter to all prominent sports leagues (including the NFL) in June about their gambling policies, and their efforts to protect the integrity of games.

The NFL has since responded, but Titus expressed disappointment on Friday that the NFL failed to be fully responsive.

“It’s very disappointing that the NFL has declined to answer our questions and instead pivoted to illegal sports betting generally in their response,” Titus said. “It makes one wonder what they are trying to hide.”

Her questions included the numbers of ongoing NFL investigations into potential gambling-policy violations.

In its response, the NFL instead focused on seeking “attention and resources” from Congress and law enforcement “to address the illicit sports betting market, which still has the power of incumbency.” In English, this means the NFL wants the feds to focus on shutting down the pre-existing gambling operations, before gambling operations became legalized.

Such illegal businesses existed for decades without the NFL banging the drum to end them. In the current climate, they take away money that could be wagered with one or more of the league’s sports-betting partners.

The situation highlights the reality that it won’t take much to get Congress to take a microscope to the NFL’s efforts to prevent gambling violations far beyond whether players placed bets on other sports while traveling for work. That’s the tip of the iceberg, and the NFL needs to be far more concerned about the stuff that is lurking under the surface.

All it takes is one big controversy, and the NFL could be dealing with a federal agency with the power to micromanage the sport. The only way to prevent or to delay that is to do everything possible to get the NFL’s house in order, voluntarily.