The NFL confirmed Friday that New York Jets wide receivers coach Miles Austin has been suspended indefinitely for violating the league’s gambling policy.
According to league spokesman Brian McCarthy, Austin is appealing the suspension. The league will have no further comment.
There is no indication Austin was betting on NFL games, a person with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports. However, the person said Austin was placing bets on other professional sports leagues, which violates the rules for NFL coaches and team personnel. Players are allowed to gamble on other sports leagues and even college football, however. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Austin’s lawyer, Bill Deni, said in a statement that the 10-year NFL veteran placed wagers from a legal mobile account on ‘table games and non-NFL professional sports’ while maintaining he did not gamble on the NFL.
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Austin, 38, is in his second season coaching the Jets wide receiving corps and began his coaching career as an offensive quality control coach with the San Francisco 49ers in 2019. He had spent the two previous seasons as a pro and college scouting intern with the Dallas Cowboys, the team he played for in eight of his 10 NFL seasons.
With the Cowboys, Austin made two Pro Bowls and was voted the 2009 Most Improved Player by the Pro Football Writers’ Association of America. Austin spent the final two seasons of his career with the Cleveland Browns (2014) and Philadelphia Eagles (2015).
Austin played collegiately at Monmouth and is a New Jersey native.
In April 2014, after his time with the Cowboys had concluded, Austin made a deep run in the World Poker Tour World Championship but finished short of the prize threshold.
This is the second gambling controversy connected to the NFL this year. In March, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Calvin Ridley — then on the Atlanta Falcons — was suspended for a year because he made less than 10 bets while on injured reserve with a non-football illness. Ridley, however, was betting on NFL games and sometimes the Falcons, the league said.
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