Now that Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison and a few of his teammates are done arm wrestling in Las Vegas, they might have to start preparing to to take on the arm of the NFL, commissioner Roger Goodell.
This past weekend, Harrison and several other NFL players were in Las Vegas to participate in a pro football arm wrestling competition that will ultimately air on CBS later this spring. While the event seems harmless outside of possibly getting an arm torn off, the NFL apparently views it as breaching their gambling policy that strictly prohibits players from appearing in Las Vegas for any type of promotional event.
The NFL has released a statement regarding the Las Vegas arm wrestling event, according to USA Today.
“Had we been asked in advance if this was acceptable, we would have indicated that it was in direct violation of the gambling policy,” Joe Lockhart, the NFL’s executive vice president for communications and public affairs said. “No one sought pre-approval.”
The players who attended and participated in the event are reportedly now subject to discipline from the league and that likely includes Harrison and possibly Steelers teammates, linebacker Arthur Moats and center Maurkice Pouncey, if they also participated in the event.
This whole thing seems to be over the top right now and it will be interesting to see what the outcome is and if indeed any players are ultimately fined or suspended. The league owners voted on and approved the move of the Oakland Raiders to Las Vegas a few weeks ago and Goodell told the media at that time that the league’s policy on gambling would not change due to that relocation.
