NFL Week 2 Bad Beats: Foiled by Desert Deja Vu, Pick-Six
Fans Enjoyed the Back-and-Forth; Bettors… Not So Much
The 2023 NFL season’s Week 2 slate did not disappoint as we saw plenty of second-half insanity, led by the Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants. But while fans (of the winning sides) relished these heroic comebacks, bettors got burned in bunches. Several of the NFL games for Sept. 17 produced results that tore up plenty of betting slips, particularly on the spread. These are the best of the worst Bad Beats for Week 2.
NFL Week 2 Heartbreakers
Rams Add Salt to that Field Goal
The San Francisco 49ers won against the Los Angeles Rams. But the home team made sure most bettors came home as unhappy as they were. While the 49ers won, only its moneyline (ML) bettors turned a profit – and not by much as they were -355 on the NFL betting lines. That’s thanks to the Rams hitting the most pointless field goal. But why?
The Rams were down by 10 in the final five minutes of the game. After failing to hit a touchdown, the team still elected to kick a field goal. Folks everywhere, particularly those who took San Francisco -7 on the NFL lines for Sept. 17, looked on in disbelief as the ball sailed in between the uprights for a final score of 30-23.
Commentator Mark Sanchez said it best: “Bad beat … oh man”. And he’d know a thing or two about distress.
The Giants are ‘Who We Thought They Were’
On Oct. 16, 2006, the Arizona Cardinals choked away a 20-point lead to the Chicago Bears. It prompted then-coach Dennis Green to unleash what is now the most iconic tirade: “The Bears are who we thought they were!”
Nearly 17 years later, the Cardinals would deliver an even more epic sequel by blowing a 21-point lead to the Giants, much to their backers’ disgust.
Trailing 30-20, the Rams made a field goal as time expired to lose 30-23.
The 49ers were 7-point favorites.
“Bad beat… oh man.”- Fox’s Mark Sanchez 🏈🎙️💸pic.twitter.com/HCcQpu7oHW
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 17, 2023
The Cardinals, +195 underdogs, appeared to be on their way to pulling off a humongous upset. The Birds built a 20-0 lead in halftime and led 28-7, only to get outscored 24-3 in the final 24 minutes of the game. New York scored 17 unanswered in the fourth quarter and saved its moneyline bettors’ bacons.
And even though Arizona still covered the spread (+5), it was far from the potential 2-1 payout the Cardinals would have returned on the NFL odds’ moneyline. Ouch.
Cheesheads Left With No Cheese
Earlier in the day, the Atlanta Falcons matched what the Giants and Rams did: Make a comeback and bust some underdog bets on a last-minute field goal. The Green Bay Packers, like the Cardinals, could not hold on as they coughed up a 24-12 lead by giving up 13 unanswered fourth-quarter points.
Younghoe Koo accounted for seven of these points as he made two field goals, including the game-clinching one with a minute left to play. It turned out to be clutch for Falcons backers, who were -155 on the moneyline. They still failed to cover (-3).
While Green Bay did cover, moneyline backers were robbed of potentially cashing in a +135 ticket. It’s not the most heartbreaking game on Sept. 17. But considering the steam Green Bay got as an early NFL pick, we reckon there were more than enough “Cheeseheads” left with anything but on their betting plates.
Pick-Six for the Loss
Not all total bettors escaped unscathed on Sunday. The Chicago-Tampa Bay game saw those who bet under 40.5 points take a big fat “L” thanks to an errant throw by Bears quarterback Justin Fields.
Down by a field goal (20-17) with just over two minutes left in the game, Fields made an ill-advised lob down the middle while Chicago was still at its own 4-yard line. The result was an interception by Shaquil Barrett who promptly scored and lifted the total to go over. A bad beat for underbettors.
