Bettors sweat, but sportsbooks lose millions
It’s never easy.
Even on one of the best NFL Sundays of the season for the betting public. Even when their beloved favorites go 10-2 ATS and overs go 8-3-1.
Las Vegas sportsbooks lost millions on one of their worst days of the NFL season. But bettors had to sweat out several of the biggest decisions, including close covers by the Packers, Cowboys, Buccaneers and 49ers.
“For once, there were bad beats for the book,” Caesars Sportsbook vice president of trading Craig Mucklow said. “Usually it’s the other way around.”
BetMGM and Caesars each reported a seven-figure loss, the SuperBook reported a six-figure loss, and Station Casinos also reported a big losing day.
The books were buried with parlays to the Packers, who closed as 12-point favorites over the Bears on Sunday Night Football at Lambeau Field.
“If the Packers cover, it will be a historic day,” Mucklow said before the game.
The total flew over in the first half as Chicago took a 27-21 lead. But Green Bay opened the second half with 24 straight points to go ahead 45-27 with 4:33 left.
After a Bears field goal with 1:26 to go, all the Packers had to do was recover the onside kick to end it. But they failed to do that, making their backers sweat some more on a cold night in the valley.
Green Bay bettors finally could exhale after Justin Fields threw an interception with 53 seconds left as the Packers won, 45-30, and covered to cap a glorious day for bettors.
CLOSE COVERS
The Bucs, 3 ½-point favorites over the Bills, appeared to be cruising to an easy cover with a 24-3 halftime lead.
But Buffalo outscored Tampa Bay, 24-3, in the second half to force overtime and push Bucs bettors to the brink, settling for a tying field goal on fourth-and-2 at the 7-yard line with 22 seconds left in regulation.
Needing a touchdown in OT to bail out Tampa Bay bettors, Tom Brady delivered a 58-yard TD pass to Breshad Perriman to lift the Bucs to a 33-27 victory and cover.
COSTLY EXTRA POINT
The Cowboys closed as 6 ½-point favorites over Washington after the line steamed from -4 ½ on Saturday because of COVID-19 absences on the WFT.
Dallas led, 24-0, at the half, and the cover wasn’t in doubt until late.
Washington scored a TD with 5:09 left to make it 2714 and was in position to burn Cowboys bettors who laid 6 ½ when Dak Prescott threw a pick-6 to make it 27-20 with 4:13 to go. But Dallas blocked the extra point and held on for the 27-20 victory and cover.
NINERS AND OVERTIME
The 49ers, -2 over the Bengals, were up 20-6 in the second half when Cincinnati rallied for two fourth-quarter TDs to send the game to OT.
The Bengals went ahead with a field goal. But Jimmy Garoppolo answered with a 12-yard TD pass to Brandon Aiyuk that gave San Francisco a 26-23 victory and cover and pushed the game over the total.
“The worst-case scenario for us was the 49ers and over,” Stoneback said. “When it goes to OT, the only way we can lose that bet is if the Bengals kick a field goal and the 49ers go down and score a touchdown. And that’s what happened.
“That was our day in a nutshell.”