Nine underdogs covering banged up the betting public and boosted bookmakers to their best Sunday of the NFL season so far.
The Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots -- the two biggest public favorites -- failed to cover the spread, and the Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers pulled off early outright upsets that were costly for bettors.
Overall, heading into the Monday night game, underdogs were 10-3 against the spread in Week 4, a typically bad recipe for bettors.
Here's this week's edition of Notable Bets, our weekly wrap-up of sports betting storylines.
NFL notable bets
Edge goes to sportsbooks
• Jeff Stoneback, sportsbook director for MGM in Nevada, said his shops accepted a half dozen six-figure point-spread bets: two on the Bears, one each on the Redskins, Cardinals, Lions and Buccaneers. Big bets cashed on the Bears, Lions and Buccaneers, while the Redskins and Cardinals failed to cover.
"Usually if we go 2-4 on the six-figure bets, we don't have that good of a day," Stoneback said Sunday afternoon. "But the public got beat up pretty bad today."
• An hour before the early Sunday kickoffs at Caesars Sportsbook, more money had been bet on the Chiefs-Lions game than had been bet on any other game. Just over 90% of the bets on the point spread and 81.2% of the money wagered was on the favored Chiefs, who closed as consensus 7-point favorites. Kansas City won 34-30.
• The Patriots were the only other team to attract 80% or more of the point-spread money at Caesars Sportsbook. New England failed to cover in a 16-10 win over the Buffalo Bills.
• More bets were placed on the Chiefs than were placed on any other team at Station Casino sportsbooks in Nevada. "In straight bets, parlays and teasers," Station sportsbook director Chuck Esposito told ESPN in an email. "The Patriots and Ravens were a distance second and third."
• The Chiefs failing to cover produced Las Vegas sportsbook operator CG Technology's biggest win of the day, a six-figure decision in favor of the house. "That was really the game of the day," CG Technology sportsbook risk manager Tony DiTommaso said.
• "We did take some sharp money on the Lions' moneyline," the MGM's Stoneback said. "That worked out perfect for us. We scooped up moneyline and the point spread, too."
Giants, rookie QB gaining traction
• The New York Giants, who won their second straight behind rookie quarterback Daniel Jones, have seen their odds to win the Super Bowl shortened from 750-1 two weeks ago to 150-1 at MGM sportsbooks.
• Right before kickoff of the Giants-Redskins game, a bettor at a CG Technology sportsbook placed two money-line bets on Washington, totaling $95,000. The bets would have paid a $138,000. The Giants won 24-3.
• One bettor at William Hill's sportsbook at Ocean Resort in Atlantic City placed a $150,000 wager on the Giants -3 (-120). The bet won $125,000.
• Jones was 20-1 to win Offensive Rookie of the Year three weeks ago. He entered last week as the second-favorite behind Cardinals quarterback and No. 1 overall draft pick Kyler Murray. "Over this past week, [Jones] has surged up the board and is now our biggest liability on that front," a spokesman for sportsbook PointsBet told ESPN.
• The Monday after Jones led the Giants to a dramatic comeback win over the Buccaneers, a bettor at PointsBet placed a $100 bet on Jones to win NFL MVP at 150-1 odds.
• DraftKings has seen a 73% spike in bets on Jones to win Offensive Rookie of the Year over the last two weeks.
Best of the rest
• The Browns' 40-25 upset of the Ravens was the best result of the day for the sportsbook at the Borgata in Atlantic City. "It beat out a lot of parlays and some high-stakes single bets," Borgata sportsbook representative Darren Darny told ESPN.
• The line on the Minnesota Vikings-Chicago Bears game shrunk throughout the day and closed at pick 'em at most sportsbooks. The Bears had been 3-point favorites for most of the week, but injuries to key defensive players triggered a move toward the Vikings. The Bears won 16-6.
• "Sharps and casual bettors bet Minnesota from a +3 dog down to pick 'em," DiTomasso said. "That was the big game for us in the afternoon. We needed Chicago."
• The nightcap between the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints was evenly bet for much of the day at MGM sportsbooks. "Just right before I picked up the phone with you, I took a $60,000 bet on the Cowboys," Stoneback said, prior to the prime-time kickoff. "We need the Saints here for a pretty good-sized decision. But as far as the day goes, it's not going to put a dent in our win because we have such a big cushion." The Saints won 12-10.
• By Sunday, the sportsbook at Rivers Pittsburgh casino was already facing a growing five-figure liability on the Steelers, who are 3.5-point home favorites over the Cincinnati Bengals in the Monday night. The casino is located within walking distance of Heinz Field.
• One week after losing $506,000 on two bets on the Browns last week, the same unnamed customer was back in action this week at the William Hill sportsbook at Ocean Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The bettor placed a $275,000 bet on the Philadelphia Eagles +4 against the Green Bay Packers. The Eagles won and covered as 3.5-point underdogs in a 34-27 road victory. The bets were first reported by Covers.com.
Early Week 5 lines
Courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook, at completion of Sunday night game
Thursday
Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks (-1, 49)
Sunday
Arizona Cardinals at Cincinnati Bengals (-4.5, 48.5)
Atlanta Falcons at Houston Texans (5.5, 48.5)
Baltimore Ravens (-4, 42.5) at Pittsburgh Steelers
Buffalo Bills at Tennessee Titans (Off)
Chicago Bears (-5.5, 41.5) vs. Oakland Raiders (in London)
Jacksonville Jaguars at Carolina Panthers (-3.5, 41)
Minnesota Vikings (-4.5, 45) at New York Giants
New England Patriots (-14.5, 45.5) at Washington Redskins
New York Jets at Philadelphia Eagles (Off)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints (Off)
Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers (-6.5, 43.5)
Green Bay Packers at Dallas Cowboys (Off)
Indianapolis Colts at Kansas City Chiefs (-10, 57)
Monday
Cleveland Browns at San Francisco 49ers (-3, 48)
Byes: Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins
College football roundup
• The SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas took a $50,000 moneyline bet on Clemson (-5000) against North Carolina. The bettor won a net $1,000 when the top-ranked Tigers survived a potential go-ahead two-point conversion by the Tar Heels in the game's final minutes.
• "We did great on that game, between guests laying the points with Clemson and those who followed up at halftime on Clemson -14 [for the second half]," SuperBook executive director John Murray told ESPN on Sunday. "But it could've been our biggest winner of the season in college football if UNC converted that two-pointer."
• Sportsbook PointsBet took a flurry of five-figure bets on Maryland right before kickoff and during the first quarter of its Friday home game against Penn State. The book reported taking a $10,500 bet on the Terrapins +6.5 (-105) and a $10,000 moneyline bet on Maryland +200. In the first quarter, with Penn State leading 14-0, PointsBet took a $33,000 bet on the Terrapins +17.5 and a $5,000 moneyline bet on Maryland at +620. Penn State would go on to win 59-0.
MLB notes
• The New York Mets' season win total closed at 85.5 at several sportsbooks. Dominic Smith hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the 11th inning to lift the Mets to a 7-6 season-ending win over the Braves on Sunday. With the win, the Mets finished the season at 86-76.
• The Minnesota Twins held off the Oakland A's on the final day of the season to claim the title as the best bet in baseball in 2019. The Twins finished up $1,867 on the moneyline, just $53 more than the A's ($1,814), according to sports betting database BetLabSports.com.
• The Detroit Tigers were the worst bet in baseball. If you bet $100 on the Tigers in every game this year, you lost $4,159.
• The Boston Red Sox, the second-worst bet behind the Tigers, boasted both the most profitable starting to pitcher to back in Eduardo Rodriguez (+$1,637) and the most costly starting pitcher to back -- Chris Sale (-$1,931).
• The best-case scenario for the World Series winner for CG Technology is the Houston Astros.
• Most bets to win the World Series (via DraftKings sportsbook):
1. Yankees
2. Mets
3. Astros
4. Phillies
5. Dodgers
• Most money wagered to win the World Series (via DraftKings sportsbook):
1. Yankees
2. Mets
3. Astros
4. Phillies
5. Dodgers
Odds & ends
• Nevada sportsbooks won a net $18.7 million off approximately $287.8 million in bets in August. Statewide, Nevada sportsbooks have not suffered a losing month since July 2013, when bettors took the books for a mere 548,000.
• A bettor at the SuperBook has placed multiple bets, totaling $85,000 on the Vegas Golden Knights in their season-opener Wednesday against the San Jose Sharks.
• A horse bettor at TwinSpires.com hit the Rainbow 6 at Gulf Stream Park on Friday, turned their $230.40 stake into a $2,211,553.22 win. The progressive jackpot had been building since July 6 and lasted 48 racing days.