If you ever think you have a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER, or take solace in the fact that you’re probably not in anywhere near as deep as New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte is.
Boutte was arrested today for felony computer fraud and misdemeanor underage gaming for placing upwards of 8,900 bets when he was in college at LSU, per Louisiana State Police.
WAFB reports that, while Boutte did bet on LSU games he personally participated in, he didn’t wager against the Tigers. Thank goodness, too.
If he’d thrown games (read: sabotaged the team so he could win a bet), we’d have all sorts of en masse, rapid-fire film study going on right about now.
Damn though, for all that Bill Belichick has accomplished, he sure knows how to whiff in spectacular fashion when drafting wide receivers. Hahaha. I mean wow. For an organization that prides itself on high character, the Patriots have a knack for finding complete knuckleheads like Boutte to occupy their roster from time to time. Boutte was widely considered a first-round talent coming out of Baton Rouge, only to fall to the sixth round in the 2023 draft due in part to underwhelming Combine testing.
The only logical, retroactive explanation is that Boutte was too busy betting to concern himself with pre-draft preparation.
Good thing the Louisiana PD reported Boutte’s betting action ranged from April 6, 2022, to May 7, 2023. Otherwise, this play in particular might’ve been called into question…
Not to poke too much fun of Boutte or make light of how serious a gambling problem can be, but in this young man’s case, I can’t for the life of me understand why he’d go through the trouble in the first place. Addiction doesn’t have any rhyme or reason to it, yet why get sucked into that world in the first place? Boutte had to know he was on track for the NFL someday. Betting hundreds of thousands of dollars on sports flat-out makes no sense. It sucks that no one was around to keep him in check.
Just a wild story all around. Character concerns were a thing for Boutte coming into the pros even without this full-blown scandal and legal situation.
The NFL has traditionally cracked down hard on sports betting, despite holding multiple major sponsorships with sportsbooks. Calvin Ridley’s violations were very minor compared to what Boutte is alleged to have done, and he was suspended for an entire season. Boutte’s actions might incur a multi-year ban and effectively end his career before it really had a chance to get started.
The only saving grace for Boutte is that all his illegal betting activity occurred before he entered the NFL. Can only speculate on what his potential punishment would be. Although he’s been released on $6,000 bond, Boutte still faces some hefty charges, which should trigger some sort of suspension under the league’s personal conduct policy.
