Tucson native Stanley Berryhill waived by Detroit Lions following suspension for gambling

The Detroit Lions waived wide receiver and Tucson native Stanley Berryhill III on Tuesday, weeks after he was suspended six games by the NFL for violating the league's gambling policy. 

The former Arizona Wildcat standout was released along with cornerback Mac McCain and defensive lineman Demetrious Taylor. 

Berryhill and fellow Detroit Lions wide receivers Jameson Williams and Quintez Cephus, along with safety C.J. Moore and Washington Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney, were suspended by the NFL for gambling on football games. 

Berryhill and Williams were mobile betting at the Lions' team facilities, but did not gamble on NFL games, and will be suspended for the first six games of the upcoming season.

"We are disappointed by the decision making demonstrated by Stanley and Jameson and will work with both players to ensure they understand the severity of these violations and have clarity on the league rules moving forward," Detroit general manager and executive vice president Brad Holmes said in a statement last month. 

Moore, Cephus and Toney are suspended indefinitely, a similar punishment handed down to Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Calvin Ridley last season.

Berryhill was a special teams contributor for the Lions and emerged as one of Detroit's "gunners" on punt coverage, a role he thrived in while playing under UA head coach Jedd Fisch. 

“When you hear from former players at the U of A, a lot of them have a harder route to play, so special teams is how you get on the field. Dane Cruikshank, after his first year, he FaceTimed the team and talked about special teams," Berryhill told ESPN Tucson in April. "Then we talked to Demetrius (Flannigan-Fowles) and he talked about special teams, so it’s a trend, and you hear coaches talk about it.

“When (Jedd) Fisch came in, he talked about the best players on special teams. ... They told me that and it sunk in, so I had to get as much film as possible. So when NFL teams look at me, they know I can do more than just catch the ball.”

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Before his time in Detroit, Berryhill signed with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent, but was waived after preseason. Berryhill returned home to Arizona to sign with the Cardinals, but was waived and then signed with their practice squad. 

"I was out for about three weeks to a month, and I didn’t have a team, so I was back in Tucson," Berryhill said. "I was on the brink of going to the CFL and I was talking to a team, had the contract ready and everything, but then I got a call from the Cardinals and was asked if I could do a tryout the next week. So I went up to Phoenix, did the tryout, they signed me to their practice squad, and I was on the Cardinals for about a month until (DeAndre Hopkins) came (back) from suspension. They also needed to sign a new kicker.

“They cut me and told me they were going to call me back, but before they had a chance to call me back and I hit the waiver wire, I get a call at like 5-6 p.m. from the Detroit Lions to be on a red-eye flight to try out for them the next morning. So I wasn’t even going to wait around for the Cardinals, I was going to take this chance. (I) jump on the red-eye flight, land in Detroit at 6:30 a.m., get picked up, go straight from the airport to get physicals and going through all the paper work. Then I tried out just after 7 a.m., so I didn’t really have much sleep because I was on the plane the whole night.

“After I tried out, they gave me a quick tour of the facility, told me I made the team and then I went to practice with the Lions that day at 1 p.m. So in that 24 hours, I had two practices with two different teams, got cut from a team and signed with another team.

“Like I said, it’s unexpected and you never know what’s going to happen. When I got that call from Detroit, I knew it was my opportunity go make something happen.”

Berryhill is entering his second season in the NFL.