By Dan Behringer for LVSportsBiz.com
What was your angle on The Big Game?
The side? The money line? The total? Maybe one of the props?
Regardless, the Las Vegas Raiders win over the Los Angeles Chargers in a Sunday Night Football thriller before 62,068 delirious fans is sure to evoke labels such as “instant classic,” an oxymoron if we ever heard one.
Yes, the Raiders won outright in a game that went deep into an overtime period before the silver-and-black prevailed, 35-32. The Raiders won even as the line jumped from Chargers -3 to -4 and even 4.5 in some spots before kickoff.
Regardless if you cashed a ticket on the Raiders or over 49 — or a parlay with the Raiders and the over, good job. You can buy the next round. And if you cashed a futures ticket on the Raiders to make the playoffs in the +360 range, you can buy the next two rounds.
A tie would have sent both teams to the playoffs, but quarterback Derek Carr insisted that wasn’t on his mind. “We knew, no matter what, we didn’t want a tie. We wanted to win the football game.”
And now it’s on to the Super Wild Card weekend and a trip to play the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday. The Bengals are currently -6.5 with the total at 49. At Covers.com, 57 percent of the action is on Cincinnati. There is a 50 percent chance of rain for the game.
Elsewhere:
— Another Big Game: There’s another Big Game and it’s Monday night. The Georgia Bulldogs meet the Alabama Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff National Championship. Both teams are 12-1. Most books opened the Bulldogs at -2.5 but the number was -3 for most of the week before coming back to -2.5 and even -2, then -3 again at some books early Monday. The total has held steady at 52.5.
There are multiple angles in the game, notably Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s 0-4 record vs. Alabama coach Nick Saban. Still, there’s CBS SportsLine computer simulation showing a Georgia 28, Alabama 26 final — if you believe in that sort of thing (We generally don’t.).
Kickoff is at 5 p.m.
— Sweet payday for Blackhawks bettors: Plenty of storylines for the Chicago Blackhawks the Vegas Golden Knights game on Saturday night. With former Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury in the net for the visitors, sentiment was running high in the jazzed-up crowd of 18,367. A tribute video honored him just before the puck drop.
“I still think (the pregame video is) better than mid-game,” the 37-year-old told The Associated Press. “It was good to get it out of the way quick. Obviously, it’s just a few images and videos, but a lot of memories come through seeing that.”
After the video, three periods of hockey and 31 saves from Fleury, it was Blackhawk bettors who were in line to cash tickets in the range of +205. Under 6 goals also paid.
After recently winning 10 of 12, the VGK have suddenly lost three of their last four. They next host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday. No line on that game as of this post.
— No runnin’ for the Rebels: If you were waiting to see how the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels would rebound from their loss to San Diego State, you’re going to have to wait some more. Their scheduled game vs. Air Force on Saturday was postponed because of COVID concerns within the UNLV program, an increasingly common trend in collegiate and professional sports. UNLV is scheduled to host New Mexico on Tuesday.
The Runnin’ Rebels are 8-6 but 4-9 ATS.
— Laugher of the week: Marquette, -3 vs. Georgetown on Friday in college basketball, used two strong quarters to rout the Hoyas, 92-64. If you’re scoring at home, that’s a cover by 25 points. Yes, sometimes it’s that easy. (But most of the time, it isn’t.)