Sunday’s marquee matchup — the Chiefs‘ 37-20 thrashing of Baltimore — was a mixed bag for sportsbooks. But every book was forced to seriously shift MVP odds owing in large part to what happened in Kansas City.
Books like BetMGM and Caesars rejoiced in the Chiefs’ upset because they were super-heavy with Baltimore money. The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, which took large bets on Kansas City, did not.
“I was shocked that we got 80% of the money on the Ravens,” BetMGM Trading Manager Christian Cipollini told CBS Sports. “I figured the game would be closer to 50-50, and we got nothing but Ravens’ action.”
Baltimore closed as a 2.5-point road favorite. Many bettors figured there was no way the ultra-talented Ravens would fall to 1-3.
“The Ravens were all the rage,” Joey Feazel, Head of Football at Caesars Sportsbook, told CBS Sports.
The rout helped shake up the MVP race. Patrick Mahomes tossed four touchdowns without an interception, while Lamar Jackson left with a hamstring injury and will be further evaluated Monday. With the Giants upsetting Justin Herbert’s Chargers and Josh Allen’s Bills moving to 4-0, Allen cemented his status as the MVP favorite.
“With Herbert losing and Lamar’s turnover and injury status, Josh Allen was the biggest mover, going from +230 to +140, along with Mahomes going from +2500 to +1400,” Feazel said.
Big sweat in Survivor pools
The undefeated Bills kicked off as 14.5-point favorites over the winless Saints. Not surprisingly, Buffalo was the most popular pick in Circa Survivor, with 4,130 contestants using the Bills. That represented 29.9% of the remaining pool.
New Orleans nearly took the lead with 8:53 left in the game, but Brandin Cooks could not corral Spencer Rattler’s low pass. The Saints settled for a field goal and a 21-19 deficit, going on to lose 31-19. The Saints drove into Buffalo territory on their first nine possessions and put a serious scare into the Bills.
There was some carnage with the Chargers (784 entries) going down to Jaxson Dart and the Giants, and the Packers (478 entries) tying Dallas 40-40. In Survivor, the team you pick must win for the entry to survive.
“Another fun week in Circa Survivor,” Circa Sports director of operations Jeff Benson told CBS Sports. “The biggest point spread favorite in years was sweatier than thought, and Dart put a dagger in the heart of Chargers’ fans.”
Contestants paid $1,000 to enter and are vying for the $18.7 million first prize.
Eagles cash, burn tickets on the last play in Week 4
One week after covering against the Rams on 336-pound Jordan Davis‘ blocked field goal return for a touchdown as time expired, the Eagles shifted tons of money again on the last play. Leading 31-23 at Tampa Bay, Philly opted to run out the clock by taking a safety, winning 31-25.
“For the second week in a row, the Eagles’ late-game score benefitted in-play customers who took the Bucs +6.5,” Feazel said. “It just shows that your ticket has life in Eagles’ games until all the zeros [show on the scoreboard].”
Davis’ improbable play at the end of Philly’s Week 3 game turned a 27-26 lead into a 33-26 final. Philly was laying 3.5 points.