National Football League

NFL odds Week 11: Wacky wins and bad beats

Updated Nov. 21, 2022 12:31 a.m. ET

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Who plays for overtime when you've got rookie Marcus Jones?

NFL fans everywhere now know the third-round pick out of Houston's name, as his late punt return touchdown gave the New England Patriots a 10-3 win over the New York Jets on Sunday. 

Jones' heroics had bettors either rejoicing or ripping up their tickets.

Welcome to the world of wacky wins and bad beats in sports betting.

Each week, we'll recap the betting plays that had some people cashing in and others tearing up their tickets in frustration. To paraphrase famed broadcaster Al Michaels, "those plays are significant to some."

Let's dive into this week's craziness!

Overtime? Ha!

The Patriots (-3) and Jets were tied at 3 when New York went into punt formation on fourth down and three from its own 32.

Jones, a cornerback/returner for New England, caught the punt at the Patriots' 16. He then ran up near the right sideline, then cut toward the center of the field near midfield and found a gap in New York's punt coverage.

Jones ran toward Jets punter Braden Mann, but we know how punters vs. punt returners in the open field usually ends. Jones raced untouched to the end zone with five seconds remaining as the Patriots covered.

It was the first punt return TD in the NFL this season, much to the joy of Patriots bettors.

Jets bettors? Well …

That's a bad beat.

Koo's kick pays off

Mention Atlanta kicker Younghoe Koo's name to a sports bettor. If they high-five you, you know they bet on the Falcons.

If they try to, well, kick you in the shins, there's a chance they bet on the Chicago Bears.

Koo kicked a game-winning 53-yard field goal with 1:47 to go. Atlanta sealed the victory with an interception with 1:07 left.

Here's how Koo's kick paid off for some bettors:

– The Falcons (-2.5) covered the spread by the thinnest of margins, 27-24.

– Atlanta (-149, bet $10 to win $16.71 total) won on the moneyline.

– The Over/Under (O/U) was 48.5 combined points, so Over bettors also cashed in with Koo's kick while Under bettors were … well, kicking themselves.

Falcons take down the Bears 27-24

The Atlanta Falcons defeat the Chicago Bears 27-24 with the help of Younghoe Koo's 55-yard field goal.

Kelce + Mahomes = bad news for Under

Stop us if you've heard this before: Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce make a pretty dangerous duo.

Mahomes threw three touchdown passes to Kelce as the Kansas City Chiefs rallied to beat the Los Angeles Chargers 30-27 on Sunday Night Football.

Under bettors (52.5) were feeling pretty confident heading into the fourth quarter as the Chargers led 20-16.

Kelce caught his second TD pass of the game early in the fourth quarter to give the Chiefs a 23-20 lead but Under bettors still had a decent chance as neither team scored in the next 13 minutes.

The Chargers took a 27-23 lead by scoring a TD with 1:46 to go.

Guess what happened next?

Mahomes threw a 17-yard TD pass to Kelce with 31 seconds to go to ruin the night for Chargers moneyline (+205) and Under bettors.

Difference between 8.5 and 7.5

It does matter where you place your wager!

The Cleveland Browns were between 8.5 and 7.5-point underdogs against the Buffalo Bills.

Buffalo had the game in hand when Cleveland scored a touchdown with 19 seconds remaining. The extra-point kick made the final 31-23.

Bettors who got the Browns +8.5 cashed in, but Bills bettors who gave up 8.5 were mad (and not just because they've been shoveling snow if they live in Buffalo).

Bettors who wagered on 7.5 points had a different outcome because of a failed two-point conversion attempt a few minutes earlier.

The Browns scored a touchdown with just over four minutes remaining and went for two points but failed, making it 28-16.

The Bills then kicked a field goal, and the Browns scored the late TD to end the scoring.

Had the Browns made the two-point conversion, the Browns +7.5 bettors would've cashed (the score would've been 31-25).

Every play counts

The Washington Commanders knocked the Philadelphia Eagles from the ranks of the unbeaten 32-21 on Monday Night Football.

The game's final play paid off handsomely for at least one bettor and likely caused agony for others.

Leading 26-21, the Commanders punted, and the Eagles took over at their 10-yard line with 5 seconds to go.

To quote Al Michaels, the final play was "significant to some."

The Eagles desperately tried to come up with a miracle 90-yard touchdown on the final play. Instead, it resulted in a TD – for the Commanders.

Washington defensive end Casey Toohill was credited with a 1-yard fumble return to make the final 32-21. A New York bettor cashed in a $2,000 profit on his $30 three-way parlay bet because Washington scored a defensive TD.

Another parlay bettor was a half-yard from turning a $22.22 parlay bet at +50000 into $11,132.22.

The bettor needed Philadelphia's Miles Sanders to finish with more than 54.5 yards. Sanders did not get a carry in the final three minutes.

Wait, there's more! During the final play, Philadelphia's DeVonta Smith was credited with a 14-yard loss on a reception, ruining the day for bettors who had Smith over 52.5 receiving yards.

Bettors Over-joyed

The No. 40 was significant to some in No. 9 Clemson's 40-10 win over Miami on Saturday.

The win was the 40th in a row at home for the Tigers, the longest active streak in the nation, and an ACC record.

Clemson reaching 40 points with a late TD affected O/U bettors, as the total was 48.

Under bettors were fairly confident heading into the fourth quarter as the Tigers led 26-3.

Clemson scored a TD with 4:40 left to make it 33-10, then the Hurricanes lost a fumble on their second play from scrimmage with less than four minutes to go.

The Tigers took over at the Hurricanes' 36. Instead of playing it safe and running the clock, Clemson marched down the field in seven plays, including two passes.

Clemson scored a touchdown with 16 seconds left as Over bettors rejoiced and Under bettors destroyed their tickets.

In Dabo Sweeney's defense, Clemson is holding out hope of sneaking into the College Football Playoff, so increasing the margin of victory might help.

Quite a kick in the …

So what motivated Stanford coach David Shaw to attempt a long field goal on the final play as the Cardinal trailed California 27-17?

Was it to showcase the leg strength of junior kicker Joshua Karty, who kicked a career-best 61-yard field goal to make the final 27-20? It was a school record and the longest field goal in the Big Game.

As for the total, the O/U was 46.5.

Just asking for a friend …

Another 27-20

South Alabama was a 7.5-point favorite against Southern Mississippi, and the O/U was 45.5 in the Sun Belt Conference game.

The Jaguars scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take a 27-17 lead with 1:53 to go.

On the Golden Eagles' final possession, they marched to the Jaguars' 19 with 13 seconds left to play. 

Time for one or two passes to the end zone?

Nope, the Eagles kicked a field goal to make it 27-20 as the Jaguars failed to cover by .5, and the Under lost with a 47 total.

Another tough one for some bettors out there.

As always, stay tuned for more of the wackiness!

And if you want to join in on the fun (or madness), head over to FOX Bet for all your wagers.

Download the FOX Super 6 app for your chance to win thousands of dollars on the biggest sporting events each and every week! Just make your picks and you could win the grand prize. Download and play today!

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Casey Toohill

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Younghoe Koo

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