Raiders bail out Las Vegas books with upset over Bears
A year before the Raiders turn Nevada into the Silver and Black State, they kept the state’s sportsbooks in the black on Sunday.
Oakland’s 24-21 upset of the Bears in London was the biggest win of the day for the books as bettors loaded up on Chicago.
“It would’ve been a disastrous day for us if the Bears had covered,” The Mirage sportsbook director Jeff Stoneback said. “It was a monster game for us. It was probably our biggest win of the year on any game.”
Stoneback said late sharp money on Chicago drove the line from 5½ to 6½ and that MGM Resorts took a six-figure straight bet on the Bears minus 6½ and plenty of action on the money line as well.
“Winning straight up made it even sweeter for us,” Stoneback said. “But it was one of those games we really had to sweat.”
Oakland blew a 17-0 halftime lead before going ahead for good on Josh Jacobs’ 2-yard TD run with 1:57 left. The Raiders gave William Hill its only win of the 10-game slate of 10 a.m. games.
“We definitely needed to win the Raiders game. Everyone was on the Bears,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich said. “(The Raiders) are playing a lot better than I thought they would. Maybe next year we’ll get a nice little product. I know they’ve got a lot of draft picks.”
Six-dog day
Oakland (3-2 straight up/ATS) was one of six underdogs to cover and win outright, along with the Colts (+10½), Broncos (+4½), Bills (+3½), Cardinals (+3) and Packers (+3).
After the Raiders beat the Broncos in their season opener, they lost to the Chiefs and Vikings but have now pulled off two outright upsets during a brutal stretch of five consecutive games away from home.
“They’re kind of a hard team to get a handle on,” Stoneback said. ‘That’s a lot of the NFL in a nutshell. That’s why it’s so hard to bet. It’s hard to figure out teams in the middle of the road. I guess that’s what keeps us in business.”
Bettors pound Patriots
The biggest loss for the books was the Patriots, who closed as 16½-point road favorites over the Redskins and outscored Washington 21-0 in the second half en route to a 33-7 win and cover.
MGM Resorts took two six-figure straight bets on New England. William Hill also lost big on the Patriots and Eagles, who cruised to a cover as 14-point favorites over the Jets in a 31-6 victory.
“Those were the two big ones we needed and we had no chance in either one,” Bogdanovich said. “The Jets and the Redskins are pitiful.”
CG Technology was a small winner despite going 1-3 in its four major decisions, winning on the Raiders and losing on the Patriots, Vikings and Broncos.
Minnesota covered as a 5½-point road favorite over the Giants in a 28-10 win.
An MGM bettor lost a six-figure wager on the Giants while another won a six-figure bet on the Packers, who upset the Cowboys 34-24 as 3-point underdogs.
Sharps split on Broncos, Bucs
The Chargers were 6½-point favorites over Denver before late sharp money on the underdog caused the number to drop to 4½. It was a wise move as the Broncos took a 17-0 first-half lead and held on for a 20-13 win.
The Saints opened as 6½-point favorites over the Buccaneers before heavy sharp money on the underdog moved the line to 3. That was an unwise move as Teddy Bridgewater threw four TD passes to lead New Orleans to a 31-24 win over Tampa Bay in one of the best decisions for Station Casinos.
“We split the four biggest games we needed in the Raiders, Giants, Redskins and Saints,” Sunset Station sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said. “But the biggest, by far, was the Raiders. It knocked down straight bets, parlays and just annihilated teasers. It was pretty one-sided action.”
“It’s definitely something for the Raiders to build on. I really like the way Jacobs runs the ball, (QB Derek) Carr played good today, too, and they have a ton of picks next year.”
The books and the Raiders capped off their day on a high note Sunday night as the Colts — plus 450 on the money line — dealt the Chiefs (4-1) their first loss in a 19-13 victory.
Oakland trails Kansas City by only one game in the AFC West heading into its bye week.
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Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.