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By Peter Barzilai, USA TODAY
Gamblers across the country should give a nod to the New York Giants when they gather around the turkey Thursday and give thanks.
Coach Jim Fassel's team intentionally took a safety late in Monday night's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, making the final score 19-13 and costing bookmakers — legal and illegal — plenty of stuffing.
"Two billion dollars changed hands on that safety," USA TODAY sports analyst Danny Sheridan estimates.
The opening line for the game favored the Bucs by 5 1/2 points, but a high majority of bettors wagered money on them, and the line was moved to six points Monday afternoon.
The bookmakers were poised to cash in after Tampa, leading 17-13, passed on a field goal try and missed on a fourth-and-1 play at the New York 12 with less than 2:30 left in fourth quarter. Giants quarterback Kerry Collins threw two incomplete passes and was sacked for a 9-yard loss and that was followed by the two-minute warning. With 97 yards to go for a go-ahead TD, New York chose to take a safety and try to get the ball back with an onside kick.
Bad idea. The Bucs recovered the ball, ran out the clock and won 19-13. That means either a majority of the bettors won (Bucs -51/2) or tied (Bucs -6) and got their money back.
"The worst thing that can happen to a bookmaker," Sheridan says, "is to have a nationally televised NFL game fall on the final number like it did Monday because almost everybody who bet the game wins or ties. There are no losers ... except the bookmakers."
Gamblers across the country should give a nod to the New York Giants when they gather around the turkey Thursday and give thanks.
Coach Jim Fassel's team intentionally took a safety late in Monday night's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, making the final score 19-13 and costing bookmakers — legal and illegal — plenty of stuffing.
"Two billion dollars changed hands on that safety," USA TODAY sports analyst Danny Sheridan estimates.
The opening line for the game favored the Bucs by 5 1/2 points, but a high majority of bettors wagered money on them, and the line was moved to six points Monday afternoon.
The bookmakers were poised to cash in after Tampa, leading 17-13, passed on a field goal try and missed on a fourth-and-1 play at the New York 12 with less than 2:30 left in fourth quarter. Giants quarterback Kerry Collins threw two incomplete passes and was sacked for a 9-yard loss and that was followed by the two-minute warning. With 97 yards to go for a go-ahead TD, New York chose to take a safety and try to get the ball back with an onside kick.
Bad idea. The Bucs recovered the ball, ran out the clock and won 19-13. That means either a majority of the bettors won (Bucs -51/2) or tied (Bucs -6) and got their money back.
"The worst thing that can happen to a bookmaker," Sheridan says, "is to have a nationally televised NFL game fall on the final number like it did Monday because almost everybody who bet the game wins or ties. There are no losers ... except the bookmakers."
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