“There were a lot of tickets that pretty much went in the garbage pretty quick,” said Chuck Esposito, Station Casinos Race & Sports Book Director. Perhaps the only bright side for bettors was that those were all games in the 10 a.m. window, meaning the pain was over fast.
With all that in mind, let’s quickly look back over the sport’s landscape and dish out some insight on what’s ahead on the field, on the diamond, on the ice, on the STN Sports App and at the Station Casinos Race and Sports Book.
Week 6 Pro Football
The bird is the word in the NFL, and it has nothing to do with a middle finger. Although the Atlanta Falcons are 3-3, they are still undefeated against the spread. And they’ve yet to be favored in a game in 2022 (the same holds true this weekend, where they’re nearly a touchdown ‘dog at Cincinnati.)
“There was a lot of play on Atlanta this past weekend, but I think it was more from the sharp betters as opposed to the public,” Esposito said, believing they might get more love next week. “From week to week the public kind of remembers the last thing they saw, and they played a really good game against a 49ers team that most people think is pretty good.” Interestingly, the Falcons are crushing the spread week in and week out, but they’ve only outscored their opponents by 10 points. They also own one of the worst defenses in the league, coming in at 27th.
Offensively, they’re also nothing special, as the Marcus Mariota-led unit ranks 23rd, which puts them in the bottom third. Still, they’re 6-0 ATS. Go figure. Like Ludacris says, “Welcome to Atlanta where the players play.”
Game of the Week?
As expected, the Chiefs/Bills game was a doozy. Although the public beat the Book with the Bills covering the short line, Station escaped the game like a prison inmate at Southern Desert Correctional Center. “The total in the game was like another game itself,” Esposito said, estimating that over 70% of the total tickets were on the over. “It was an automatic over play for most bettors.” The game — which featured two of the most explosive offenses in the NFL — ended up easily going under the total, which was set at 54. “Keeping this game under was really paramount,” Esposito said of the 24-20 final.
College Frenzy
For some bettors, Sunday funday was over before it started. “There was a number of big money line parlays tied to a bunch of the big favorites in the NFL, but they were all tied to Alabama,” Esposito said. Bama, of course, lost outright to Tennessee despite coming in as a touchdown favorite. Still, the Book found itself cheering for Bama, as sharps and the public bet on Good Ole Rocky Top. Over in the actual Rocky Mountains, Cameron-Bad-Moon-Rising and his Utah Utes fended off Southern California, in what was one of the bigger decisions of the day.
“The Utah game was kind of the best case really, with Utah winning by one of two,” Esposito said, noting the Utes 43-42 win. “That kind of knocked down all the Southern Cal moneyline parlays, and Utah didn’t cover the spread.”
In the TCU/Oklahoma State game, the under of 68.5 was looking like a sure thing. Even with 46 points on the board to begin the 4th Quarter, the under seemed well in hand… That is, of course, until TCU scored a late touchdown to tied the game up and send it into overtime. You know what they say: it’s not called undertime.
“That was one of our bigger total decisions of the day, which was a bad beat for our side of the counter,” Esposito said. “Everybody kind of loaded up on that game to go over, and we had a real shot to keep it under.” After two overtime periods, 83 points were on the board, meaning the total flew past the total. “That was a really bad beat for our side of the counter in that game, which was kind of a dramatic swing early in the day,” Esposito admitted. TCU doesn’t stand for Taking Care of Unders.
The Association Is Back
Welcome back to the show, NBA. On Tuesday night, the NBA season kicked off with the defending conference champions hosting opponents (both Golden State and Boston won and covered.) Although the Warriors and Celtics are the two top favorites to win the prize at the end of the season, bettors are looking elsewhere.
“The Lakers are by far the team we’re carrying the most liability on,” Esposito said. “The Raptors and Cavs are getting a lot of love, too.” Among Station’s full menu of options that would make even a Cheesecake Factory jealous is an MVP prop. The two plays getting the most love are Zion Williamson of New Orleans and Anthony Edwards of Minnesota. Here’s hoping for an NBA season more eventful than a Wayne Newton show.
Going To Bat
Celtics coach Ime Udoka isn’t the only dog in sports. Over in baseball, a few underdogs continue to march toward the title. The 111-win Dodgers were bounced by the Padres, and the reigning champs were ousted by the Phillies, a team that fired its manager earlier this season. Only the American League stayed to form, although the Guardians put up a fight.
“The two teams that we had some liability on were the Dodgers and Mariners, and both of them are out,” Esposito said. “I know from an industry perspective there’s some liability on the Padres, but we’re actually in really good shape on the Padres. Overall, we’re in good shape of the teams that are left in baseball.” If Tuesday night was any indication, the Books have nothing to worry about with the Padres. One hit?
VG-OK!
Excluding that Flames game, it’s been a good Knight so far, huh! The Golden Knights have begun the season with a few wins, and the guests are already leaning heavily into the VGK, particularly on the puck line.
“If they continue to win, I’m sure fans will get more engaged,” Esposito said. “Similar to last year, they play in probably the most winnable division in the Pacific… This is a Golden Knights team that has the best roster in the Pacific. They just need their young goaltenders to stay healthy, and they need a lot of their players to stay healthy.” Repeat these words VGK: The best ability is availability!
Bets To Know
With the NBA back, so is our menu of basketball betting options! On top of every single game, every single night, look for an ever-increasing menu of props, along with season-long futures to be updated throughout the year.
Weekly Winners
$5 to $4,000! Check out this 10-leg 1/2 point parlay that hit October 16!
-Broncos +5.5
-Eagles -5.5
-Bills -2.5
-Rams -10.5
-Giants +5.5
-Jets +7.5
-Patriots +2.5
-Colts -2.5
-Bengals -1.5
-Steelers +8.5