Gamblers with bets on the Eagles in the Christmas night game against the Raiders were dealt the ultimate bad beat when Philadelphia coach Doug Pederson decided to take a knee rather than kick the extra points with no time remaining.
The point spread at kickoff was Philly -10, although bettors who put their money down on the Eagles earlier got a cheaper number, as they were -9 or -9.5 for much of the week. The final score: Eagles 19, Oakland 10.
All it would have taken for that score to become 20-10 was for Pederson to send kicker Jake Elliott onto to the field and for Elliott to knock the PAT through the uprights. Instead, the Eagles lined up in victory formation, turning a push into a loss for bettors who had Philly -10. For bettors who had Philly -9.5, the extra point would have resulted in a win.
Apparently Doug Pedersen had #Raiders +10. He elects to take knee instead of booting extra point with :00. #Eagles win 19-10. Some early OAK bettors have to settle for push...some need to send thank you note to Pedersen, especially if they have +9.5 or +10. #badbeat #MNF #NFL
— VegasInsider.com (@TwitVI) December 26, 2017
The Eagles scored a last-second meaningless TD to go from up 13-10 to up 19-10.
— Alex Kirshner (@alex_kirshner) December 26, 2017
The spread was 10.
And then they took a knee on the PAT, costing anyone who bet on them all of their money
lol lol lol lol lol https://t.co/NNswfxlFLx
SIGN UP to watch every NFL playoff game and the Super Bowl on DAZN
So bettors with Raiders +9.5 or +10 rejoiced as they dodged the losing bullet and cashed their winning tickets. But those who had Oakland at shorter number either pushed or lost, and we can consider them victims of a bad beat as well.
That’s because the Raiders, as big underdogs, hung in for the most of the game. The game was tied 10-10 until Elliott’s 48-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Bets on Oakland looked rock-solid all game long and still seemed like certain winners.
But a few plays after getting the ball back, the Raiders, down 13-10, faced a fourth-and-goal with three seconds left in the game. As they desperately tried to lateral their way to victory, they fumbled the ball, and it was scooped up by Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett, who returned it 23 yards for the touchdown.
How good is the @Eagles' defense?
— NFL (@NFL) December 26, 2017
They end games with TDs. #FlyEaglesFly#OAKvsPHI pic.twitter.com/ejpaDurex3
Eagles beat Raiders 19-10 on #MNF: ViewFromVegas is they did NOT cover after closing as 10-point home favorites (stayed under total of 46), but Philly TD on final lateral play affected all bettors who bet spread at 8.5 or 9 (& kneel down on PAT kept it from landing 10) @VSiNLive
— Dave Tuley (@ViewFromVegas) December 26, 2017
In addition to point-spread bettors, some fantasy football owners were also impacted. The Eagles’ defensive touchdown certainly swung some league championship games, and what if you needed just one more point from Elliott to claim your title?