Las Vegas books go down with Cleveland Browns
Under pressure and scrambling in the end zone, Josh McCown was about to make a costly error. McCown is the backup quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, so what else would you expect?
The winless Browns provide weekly agony for all bookmakers, and comedy and money for most bettors.
“The Browns are just so inept,” Westgate sports book director Jay Kornegay said. “It’s funny because the sharps support them every single week, and that’s a sign the line is inflated. But the public doesn’t care because they just bet against the Browns.”
The betting public looks pretty sharp sometimes, and Sunday was one of those times. Week 11 of the NFL season turned “really ugly” in Kornegay’s words, and it started to turn when McCown was hit and coughed up a fumble in the end zone.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were on their way to a win, but they also covered the 8½-point spread on a defensive touchdown with 3:36 remaining. In a 24-9 loss, the Browns again showed how bad teams find a variety of clumsy ways not to cover.
The so-called sharps continued to bet big money on Cleveland, driving the opening line from 9½ to as low as 8. For awhile, it appeared the Browns might finally pay off. Instead, it was comedy hour with McCown.
Pittsburgh and three other popular favorites — Dallas, New England and Seattle — keyed a winning day for bettors as favorites finished 9-3 against the spread.
“It was a good day for the guests, especially with all of the favorites winning in the afternoon,” Sunset Station book director Chuck Esposito said.
The line on the Patriots moved from 13½ to 11, and Tom Brady’s four touchdown passes toasted San Francisco 30-17.
“There are two really bad teams that should be demoted to Triple A. The Browns and 49ers are giving bookmakers a headache every Sunday,” Kornegay said. “People are licking their chops.”
The Seahawks were 6½-point favorites in a 26-15 victory over Philadelphia. Carson Wentz had the ball and shot to cover, but the Eagles’ final drive fizzled.
In the morning, the Cowboys closed as 7-point favorites in a 27-17 victory over Baltimore. The Ravens attracted most of the sharp money, but the public wisely stuck with Dallas, which extended its improbable spread run to 9-0-1 behind rookie Dak Prescott’s three touchdown passes.
“Dak is so efficient. It’s unbelievable how good he is,” Kornegay said. “I thought the Ravens were the right side. But the Cowboys continue to make plays.”
And I continue to make the costly mistake of betting against the Cowboys. But I will not continue to back the Packers after watching their defense get bombed for big plays by Kirk Cousins.
Washington, a 3-point favorite, handed Green Bay its fourth consecutive loss, 42-24, and it was not the fault of Aaron Rodgers. The Packers were deserted by some of their loyal bettors, so the result of the late game did not save bookmakers from a beating.
“Most people were playing with house money by the time the game kicked off,” Kornegay said. “It was heavily bet on both sides. The majority was on the Packers, but it was a no-win situation for us as parlays accumulated on both teams.
“All the parlays were rolling in. Look at the two popular teams in the morning, the Cowboys and Steelers, and people parlayed those two with the Patriots and Seahawks.”
Tony Romo might want to consider moving to Los Angeles.
The books also needed the Rams, who led the Dolphins 10-0 late in the fourth quarter. Bookmakers were reaching for painkillers when Miami, a 1-point road favorite, stunned ’dog bettors and Jeff Fisher with two Ryan Tannehill touchdown passes in the final four minutes to win 14-10.
Buffalo and Tampa Bay were the only outright underdog winners, and the Chicago Bears even pulled off a rare cover as ’dogs. The Buccaneers’ win at Kansas City was the best result in the morning for the books, but it was not enough to slow the onslaught of favorites that also included Detroit, Indianapolis and Minnesota.
The Vikings, bet from pick’em to minus-2, beat Arizona 30-24 with the help of a 100-yard interception return by Xavier Rhodes and a 104-yard kickoff return by Cordarrelle Patterson.
A total of 12 extra-point kicks were missed on a day of blunders, several of which were committed in Cleveland.
Will the Browns finish 0-16?
“This is the time of season you will start seeing a prop like that,” Kornegay said. “I hate that prop.”
Las Vegas Review-Journal sports betting columnist Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. He co-hosts “The Las Vegas Sportsline” weekdays at 2 p.m. on ESPN Radio (1100 AM). Follow on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.