National Football League

NFL odds Week 8: Wacky wins and bad beats

Updated Oct. 30, 2022 10:46 p.m. ET

The wild finish of the Carolina Panthers-Atlanta Falcons shows why bettors love (or hate, temporarily, at least) the NFL.

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!

Atlanta pulls off a wild victory in overtime versus the Panthers

The Atlanta Falcons defeated the Carolina Panthers in overtime.

Falcons-Panthers have bettors on edge

There's praise/blame all around after the Falcons' 37-34 overtime win over the Panthers. The last minute of the game had every bettor on the edge of their seats:

– Atlanta's Younghoe Koo kicked a 34-yard field goal with 36 seconds remaining in regulation to extend the Falcons lead to 34-28.

– With 23 seconds to go in the fourth quarter, Panthers quarterback P.J. Walker rolled to his left and heaved the football 70 yards downfield.

– Two Falcons defensive backs let D.J. Moore get behind them to make a diving catch in the end zone with 12 seconds remaining. The P.J.-to-D.J. connection tied the game at 34, with the extra point to come.

– But Moore was called for unsportsmanlike conduct for taking off his helmet during the celebration, pushing the extra point back 15 yards.

– Kicker Eddy Pineiro was wide left on the 50-yard extra point attempt (usually 35 yards), forcing overtime.

– In OT, victory seemed imminent as Carolina drove to Atlanta's 14-yard line after C.J. Henderson returned an interception 54 yards to the Falcons 20. For those keeping score at home, the Panthers have players named C.J., D.J. and P.J..

– Pineiro was wide left (again) on a 32-yard field-goal attempt (which was three yards shorter than a typical extra-point attempt) with 5:54 remaining in OT.

– After Pineiro's miss, Falcons QB Marcus Mariota ran 30 yards on third-and-1 to the Carolina 24.

– Koo kicked a 41-yard field goal with 1:55 left in OT to win it for the Falcons.

How did all of that impact bettors? Some betting results after the wild finish:

– One six-way parlay player turned $2 into $6,272, thanks to D.J. Moore's TD catch.

– Bettors who had the Panthers +4.5 points covered and cashed after being seconds away from not covering in regulation.

– Falcons moneyline bettors (-213, bet $10 to win $14.69 total) cashed in.

– Panthers moneyline bettors (+160, bet $10 to win $26 total) were an extra point/unsportsmanlike conduct penalty away from cashing.

– Over 41.5 bettors cashed in after a 37-point fourth quarter and overtime.

Two sacks sink Cardinals

Arizona's potential rally to force overtime ended after Kyler Murray was sacked on the final two plays as the Minnesota Vikings (-4) beat the Cardinals 34-26.

The Vikings extended their lead to eight points on a Kirk Cousins touchdown pass with 8:36 remaining, but the extra-point attempt hit the upright, keeping it a one-score game.

Minnesota held on as Arizona's final three drives ended in an interception, downs and the clock expiring with the Cardinals at the Vikings 44-yard line.

With 48 seconds to go, Murray completed a deep pass to DeAndre Hopkins for 24 yards to the Minnesota 37.

Murray spiked the ball to stop the clock but got sacked on the next two plays as time expired.

Vikings defeat Cardinals 34-26 after two clutch sacks by Minnesota defense on last two plays of the game

The Minnesota Vikings' defense proved to be the heroes in their 34-26 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

Half-yard makes a difference

A bettor placed a $1, 10-leg parlay on the Thursday night game between the Ravens and Buccaneers at +7000 (win $71 total).

The bettor hit the first nine props but fell a half-yard short on the 10th – Tom Brady passing for Under 324.5 yards.

Brady finished 26-for-44 passing for 325 yards. His final pass was an 8-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal with 49 seconds remaining.

The bettor would've cashed in with an incompletion.

Taking a knee costly

In that same game, after Brady's TD pass, the Ravens recovered an onside kick at the Tampa Bay 46 with 48 seconds to play.

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson twice took a knee, each for a 1-yard loss to run out the clock.

Jackson finished with 43 yards on nine carries.

Jackson's rushing Over/Under (O/U) was 45 yards, ruining a bettor's four-leg parlay.

Big parlay for TD scorers

Alvin Kamara of the Saints, A.J. Brown of the Eagles, D'Onta Foreman of the Panthers and Tony Pollard of the Cowboys each scored three touchdowns on Sunday.

Did a parlay player out there make that play and cash in for $2,740,390?

Penn State backers lament pick-six

Penn State (+16) led Ohio State 21-16 with less than 10 minutes remaining Saturday. Things quickly unraveled for the Nittany Lions, but Penn State backers who took the points still had a chance.

The Buckeyes went on to outscore the Nittany Lions 28-3, including 14 points in 28 seconds, to close the game.

A pick-six scored by an Ohio State defensive end (a defensive end!) doomed Penn State backers.

The Nittany Lions were covering 37-24 when defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau returned an interception 14 yards to end the scoring 44-24 with 2:42 left, causing Nittany Lions backers to rip up their tickets soon.

Extra point crucial

Florida State comfortably les Georgia Tech (+24) by 31 points after scoring a touchdown with 1:09 to go.

The Yellow Jackets took over at their 25-yard line, completed six passes in eight attempts to march down the field and scored a touchdown on a running play late in the game.

Exactly when is up for debate.

Screenshots showed one second was remaining, but officials declared the game was over. Since it would not affect the outcome, the extra point was not attempted.

The Yellow Jackets lost by 25 points, 41-16. Ouch.

Interception turns into fumble turns into …

Unranked Louisville was comfortably ahead of No. 10 Wake Forest 48-14 with less than six minutes remaining. The O/U was 65.5 points.

The Demon Deacons drove to the Cardinals 14-yard line with 1:45 to go.

Good news for Under bettors: Louisville intercepted a pass on third down.

Bad news: The Cardinals fumbled after the pick, and the Demon Deacons recovered.

Worse news: Wake Forest scored a TD with 14 seconds to go, making the final 48-21, much to the chagrin of Under bettors.

O/U good for some

No. 7 TCU led West Virginia 34-31 and took over at midfield after a punt with 2:45 to go. The O/U was 65.5 points.

The Horned Frogs kept moving the ball as the clock counted down. TCU called a timeout with 26 seconds to go and facing fourth-and-1 from the West Virginia 26.

The Horned Frogs completed a TD pass on the next play, making the score 41-31 to hit the Over. That was of no consolation to Under bettors.

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.

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