"Investigate Calvin Ridley for sports betting ASAP" - Titans WR grilled by fans for dropping 2 costly catches in 20-12 loss to Broncos

Calvin Ridley was a rare bright spot for the Tennessee Titans last season, catching 120 passes for 1,017 yards and four touchdowns. However, if his performance on Sunday is any indication, then he may be headed for a monstrous regression in 2025.

In his team's season-opener at the Denver Broncos, the wide receiver had just four catches for 27 yards and no scores. He also dropped a pair of crucial passes in the fourth, one of which came on second down on the final drive of the game.

As soon as the final whistle sounded, fans immediately started wondering whether he had resumed betting on football again:

Sam Park

@samueljpark

INVESTIGATE CALVIN RIDLEY FOR SPORTS BETTING ASAP

Lord Blaize Landry☝🏼

@blaizelandry

Calvin Ridley 100% took the under on his own yards, ain’t no way he’s dropping those two balls

Amateur Sports Takes

@AmateurFBTakes

Calvin Ridley had money on the game. Two costly drops late in the fourth when Tennessee needed him most… #TitanUp

"We paid Calvin Ridley Top 10 WR money, & he has bricks for hands," one rued.

"Investigate Calvin Ridley for betting again man," another demanded.

"Calvin Ridley bet the under on himself," another posited.

The Titans eventually lost the game 12-20 after Cam Ward was sacked and lost the ball on the final down. All their points came from Joey Slye, who hit four field goals.

The Broncos, meanwhile, got a mixed day from Bo Nix, who was picked off twice but still had a touchdown to Courtland Sutton. JK Dobbins had a stellar game as well, carrying the ball 16 times for 63 yards and a six, while Wil Lutz had two field goals.

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Calvin Ridley's gambling scandal, explained

In the middle of the 2021 season, Calvin Ridley, then an Atlanta Falcon announced that he was stepping away from football for the foreseeable future because of mental health issues. Many were surprised, as he was coming off a monstrous 1,374-yard 2020 breakout that saw him be named a second-team All-Pro.

The real reason would not come until March of the following year: he had been caught betting on games. He was suspended indefinitely and ordered to forfeit his $11.1-million salary. During the season, he was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars for two conditional Day 3 picks in 2023 and 2024.

He was eventually reinstated in March 2023, the day before the first anniversary of his suspension. He called the experience "a dark moment" and "a stupid mistake" on The Players' Tribune but insisted that he "wasn't trying to cheat the game":

"I just f***ed up. Period. ...That's the thing I want to make clear. At the time, I had been completely away from the team for about a month. I was still just so depressed and angry, and the days were so long. I was looking for anything to take my mind off of things and make the day go by faster."

Ridley would finish the 2023 season with 76 catches for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns, as the Jaguars missed the playoff after blowing an 8-3 divisional lead. He joined the Titans on a four-year, $92-million contract the following offseason.