NFL Flexes Muscles Over Players’ Arm Wrestling Contest at MGM Grand

The NFL could have sanctioned the Raiders’ move to Las Vegas but that doesn’t mean it’s happy because of its players to hold out in casinos, even for arm-wrestling competitions.
LA Rams’ Jamon Brown squares off against Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Howard Jones during the Pro Football Arm Wrestling Championship at the MGM Grand but are they about to get strong-armed by the NFL for engaging in casino activities that are promotional?
Over 30 players, including Maurkice Pouncey, Mychal Kendricks, Navarro Bowman, Kenny Stills, and Marquette King, may find themselves in warm water for competing in the inaugural ‘Pro Football Arm Wrestling Championship’ at the MGM Grand over the weekend.
The event ended up being co-hosted by Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison and former operating straight back Marshawn Lynch, a made-for-TV deal that is scheduled to be broadcast on CBS on May 27 28.
But according to NFL policy, players are not permitted to ‘promote casino activities,’ which includes attending casinos as part of promotional activities, unless they seek pre-approval, which, in line with the NFL, is what everyone apparently forgot to complete.
‘Had we been asked in advance if this had been acceptable, we would have indicated that it was in direct violation associated with gambling policy,’ Joe Lockhart, the NFL’s VP for communications and public affairs, told USA TODAY Sports. ‘No one sought pre-approval.’