Patrick Everson
FOX Sports Betting Analyst
Regular bettors tend to bet on favorites and like to include themselves in parlays. But the NFL is one of the most unpredictable professional sports leagues in the world, and this brings a few surprising results every week.
Not this week.
Going into Sunday night’s game between the Bengals and the Giants, bookies were asking for Giants wagers because of the amount of losses they had already taken in previous games. The Week 6 favorites entered that game at 11-1 straight up (SU) and 9-2-1 against the spread (ATS), leading to a big day for the community.
Joe Brennan Jr., chairman of Prime Sports said, “What a day today is for the NFL. If you know anyone who likes the Giants tonight, we have an account ready and waiting.” He wasn’t the only one who had those feelings.
“It’s the worst day of the season so far. This could be really bad if the Bengals win and cover,” said Zachary Lucas, director of sports sales for TwinSpires Sportsbook.
To his and many others’ disappointment, the Giants didn’t win or tie, which meant two things: the favorites were now 12-1 SU and 10-2-1 ATS, and the sportsbooks desperately needed a Jets win against the Bills on Monday night.
Jeff Benson, director of operations for Circa Sports, posted this to X, summarizing Sunday/Monday in the NFL:
Tune in to Monday Night Football.
The Jets trailed 20-10 with eight seconds left in the second quarter before Aaron Rodgers threw a 52-yard touchdown to make it 20-17 at the end of the first half.
New York will score a goal in the third quarter to tie it at 20-20 heading into the fourth. Field goals had a big impact on the outcome of the game, as Greg Zuerlein made two of four. After his miss in the fourth quarter, the Bills drove 64 yards down the field in 11 plays and kicked a field goal to take a 23-20 lead.
Rodgers had just four minutes left to make it for the sportsbooks, but he was caught on a deep throw after Mike Williams fell before he could intercept the ball. The favorites finished the week 13-1 SU and 11-2-1 ATS. BetMGM chief trader Tristan Davis said, “Bettors got the whole sundae this week, and they deserved it. It’s been a bad start to the season for them.”
Buffalo’s win also ended many parlays in the community. Scott Shelton of BetMGM Nevada was quoted as saying, “There are parlays as long as my arm is going to take out the Bills -1.5.”
For perspective, this is just the third time in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) that only one favorite lost to SU in Week 6 of the season (1975 and 2005). I’ll leave you with one last quote from Lucas, who feared the Buffalo victory as mentioned earlier:
“With the Bills winning, it’s like we have PIN-less ATMs at our sportsbooks. Everyone’s cashing out.”
Patrick Everson is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and a senior reporter for VegasInsider.com. He is a respected journalist in the national sports betting area. He is based in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golfing in 110-degree heat. Follow him on Twitter: @PatrickE_Vegas.
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