And then there were 4! The Chiefs, Ravens, Lions, and 49ers all punched their respective tickets to the Conference Championship round of the NFL Playoffs over this past weekend. According to multiple sportsbooks, San Francisco and Baltimore have the best odds to win Super Bowl LVIII.
After a fabulous NFL weekend, we're all fired up for the Conference Championships. Let's go over some crazy bets and bad beats from the Divisional Round. Have a marvelous Monday, everybody!
Bad Beat: Bucs Let Down Sports Bettor at DraftKings
Sunday afternoon did not go well for a particular sports bettor at DraftKings. Someone put their faith in Baker Mayfield and Tampa Bay (+6) to the tune of a $50,000 bet. Unfortunately, the Bucs let this bettor down in the 4th quarter after hanging tough for most of the game. Here's how it all went down.
The first quarter didn't give football fans much offense, as both teams traded field goals. However, the second quarter saw both teams find the end zone to spur some excitement. Jared Goff hooked up with Josh Reynolds for a 9-yard TD to put Detroit up 10-3.
It looked as if the Lions would have the lead at the break, but Mayfield found Cade Otton in the end zone with just 15 seconds left to tie the game at 10 apiece. Mike Evans caught back-to-back deep passes to set up that score for the Bucs.
After halftime, the two teams traded touchdowns in the 3rd quarter. The ticket on the Bucs +6 was looking pretty good, but everything came unraveled in the final period. Standout rookie Jahmyr Gibbs broke off a 31-yard touchdown run to put the Lions back in front for good. Goff then found Amon-Ra St. Brown for a 9-yard TD strike to extend the lead.
All was not lost, however. Mayfield connected with Evans for a 16-yard TD to bring the Bucs to within 8. Todd Bowles decided to go for a 2-point conversion, which would have given our crazy bettor at DraftKings a push. Unfortunately, Mayfield's pass landed incomplete and resulted in a stinging $50,000 loss.
Crazy Bet: Chiefs Help Caesars Sports Investor Cash Huge Ticket
The blossoming rivalry between Kansas City and Buffalo couldn't have worked out better for a certain bettor at Caesars. Someone was so confident in Patrick Mahomes and Co. that they placed a $200,000 moneyline wager on the Chiefs at odds of +130. This bet took some guts to make, especially since Buffalo had defeated Kansas City during the regular season.
As you might imagine, this game was a classic back-and-forth struggle between these two AFC heavyweights. The two teams traded field goals during a somewhat slow first quarter, but Josh Allen gave Buffalo a 10-3 lead with a 5-yard TD run early in the second. Kansas City responded with a Harrison Butker field goal and a TD pass from Mahomes to Travis Kelce.
This gave the Chiefs a brief 13-10 lead, much to delight of Taylor Swift and her cronies in the luxury box. However, that lead quickly evaporated when Allen once again found the end zone with his legs to give the Bills a 17-13 lead at the half.
The two teams traded touchdowns in the 3rd stanza, which meant that the Bills clung to a 4-point lead heading into the final period. Mahomes engineered an 8-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in a 4-yard Isiah Pacheco touchdown run. This put Kansas City up 27-24. That's when the Chiefs defense stood up.
Kansas City had struggled to stop the run for most of the game, but all of that changed after Pacheco's touchdown. Buffalo even tried a fake punt, but Damar Hamlin was stopped short of the line to gain. The Bills got away with that questionable decision, though, because Mecole Hardman fumbled the ball through the side of the end zone.
This gave the ball back to Buffalo, but they had no answer for Kansas City's swarming defense. The Chiefs made the Bills go 3-and-out on their next possession. Allen rallied the troops to try and tie the game, but Tyler Bass missed a field goal with less than 2 minutes left in the game.
The Bills Mafia may have left the game heartbroken, but our crazy bettor at Caesars was happy as a lark. He went home $260,000 richer! Wow!
