Jade Roper Tolbert Accused of Colluding with Husband After Winning $1M in Fantasy NFL Contest
Jade Roper Tolbert won big in a recent fantasy football contest, but it didn’t take long before many online began to accuse her of colluding with her husband, Tanner Tolbert.
Over the weekend, several people began tweeting that the Bachelor in Paradise season 2 winner, 32, had finished in first place in a DraftKings fantasy contest for the NFL’s wild-card round — and that her prize was $1 million.
“I’m pretty sure this girl was on The Bachelor. I only know this because my girlfriend forces me to watch it,” wrote one Twitter user, alongside a screenshot of the results page, which showed the reality star’s payout as well as a photograph of herself and her husband.
“Hahaha that’s me! And Tanner told me I shouldn’t play DK Metcalf!” Jade replied, referring to the Seattle Seahawks wide receiver who earned 32 points in the fantasy contest following his team’s victory against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, according to CBS Sports.
In response to another Twitter user who commented on how the news cut across very different fandoms, she replied, “Doesn’t even feel real over here! Officially speechless. LIKE WHAAAAAAAAT.”
Fellow Bachelor in Paradise alum Carly Waddell also commented on the news, writing, “HAHAHHAHAHAA OMG THIS IS NUTS!!! HELL YES!!!!!!!”
Hahaha that’s me! And Tanner told me I shouldn’t play DK Metcalf! ???? https://t.co/Ry25Kuq4k9
— Jade Roper Tolbert (@jadelizroper) January 6, 2020
Doesn’t even feel real over here! Officially speechless. LIKE WHAAAAAAAAT. ?????????? https://t.co/7yMFZtI4Au
— Jade Roper Tolbert (@jadelizroper) January 6, 2020
However, many on Twitter have accused the couple of working together in order to gain an unfair advantage.
Numerous social media users shared screenshots that appeared to show the breakdowns between which players the couple built their lineups around, noting that there seemed to be a strong correlation between the choices. One specific list of quarterbacks also seemed to show that the majority of Jade’s choices played in Saturday’s games while the majority of Tanner’s played on Sunday.
Additional sleuthing from Twitter users appeared to show that the pair each picked 150 lineups, which generated 300 unique entries.
“This is absolutely insanity and is the the clearest collusion ever. Check the QBs lmao,” wrote one Twitter user, while another alleged, “She and her husband cheated, end of story.”
“Everyone realizes the two of them max entered and split their player exposure, right? And that is illegal,” added another.
Yet another Twitter user pointed out a tweet, which appears to have been deleted, from fellow Bachelor in Paradise alum Chris Randone, congratulating Tanner on his win, instead of his wife.
“OMG congrats to my boy @ttolbert05 winning the f- milly maker!!!!” read the Tweet, to which Tanner replied, “Technically Jades lineup won…but til death do us part”
The next day, Randone seemingly addressed the controversy, tweeting, “I’m done speaking on the situation that doesn’t involve me. Two great friends I love and support in which I thought was doing the right thing in defending from the information I personally know that’s valid But with the hate messages and death threats I just want to be left alone.”
I'm done speaking on the situation that doesn't involve me. Two great friends I love and support in which I thought was doing the right thing in defending from the information I personally know that's valid But with the hate messages and death threats I just want to be left alone
— Chris Randone (@ChrisRandone) January 6, 2020
“I mean they basically told on themselves trying to make it seem like they weren’t working together, lol” claimed one Twitter user.
According to DraftKing’s website, “group play behavior designed to gain an unfair advantage over others” is against the rules.
As an example of the behavior, DraftKings described the following scenario: “You and 2 of your friends coordinate the makeup of the lineups you build AND coordinate which contests you enter using them.” Another example reads: “you and a group of friends collaborate in NFL contest to each draft different QBs and WRs, to guarantee you aren’t competing as directly with each other.”
When reached by PEOPLE, a spokesperson for DraftKings said they were “looking into” the situation.
“We take the integrity and fairness of our contests very seriously and are looking into this matter,” the spokesperson said.
Roper Tolbert had no immediate comment when reached by PEOPLE.