Former NFL Player Wendell Smallwood Sentenced for COVID-19 Fraud

WILMINGTON, Del. — Wendell Smallwood Jr., a former NFL running back, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for orchestrating a COVID-19 fraud scheme that stole $645,000 from government relief programs. U.S. District Senior Judge Richard G. Andrews delivered the sentence on Thursday in a Wilmington courtroom, just blocks from Smallwood’s childhood home.

Smallwood, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles and celebrated a Super Bowl victory in 2017, faced serious legal troubles after his football career fizzled. He was cut from the Eagles in 2019 and spent time with the Washington Redskins and Pittsburgh Steelers, ultimately landing on the Steelers’ practice squad during the pandemic.

In court, Smallwood admitted his wrongdoing. “I feel like I let the community down. I let my family down,” he said, expressing remorse for his actions. He directly took responsibility for his fraud, which he described as a series of deliberate lies told to secure funds from federal programs designed to support businesses struggling during the pandemic.

From May 2020 through August 2023, Smallwood admitted to directing multiple schemes to defraud the government. He submitted false loan applications for the Economic Injury Disaster Loans and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). He claimed to operate three businesses that were either non-existent or inactive, collecting nearly $310,000 in loans, which he later turned into kickbacks from 13 accomplices.

The fraudulent activities included submitting fake tax returns to the IRS, which netted him an additional $110,000. He recruited others to file these bogus claims, significantly increasing the scale of his fraud.

While Smallwood’s lawyer, Mark Sheppard, argued for probation by pointing out Smallwood’s volunteer work with youth organizations and a troubled upbringing, federal prosecutors argued for a harsher sentence, emphasizing the calculated nature of his criminal activities.

Judge Andrews took into account Smallwood’s past but ultimately decided the severity of the crimes warranted prison time. “The scope of your criminal activity is long, and the dollars were substantial,” Andrews stated during the sentencing. In addition to prison time, Smallwood was ordered to repay the $645,000 to the government.

Following the sentencing, Smallwood stated he would return to community service upon his release. He is due to report to prison in mid-December after completing online courses at West Virginia University, where he is finishing his degree in criminology. Meanwhile, he is also facing separate felony charges in New Jersey for illegal possession of weapons discovered during a raid on his home.