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For bettors, there are few phrases that can send a cold chill down their spines faster than “bad beat.” Ask any gambler about it, and you’ll likely be inundated with endless stories of all the money they lost out on from bad beats.
For the uninitiated, bad beat originated as a poker term to describe something unlucky that costs you a win. That same definition applies to sports betting, but instead of getting hurt by the river card, you lose your college basketball bet because a seventh-year walk-on makes a meaningless 3-pointer with seven seconds left in a blowout.
While every sport has its own version of bad beat (every garbage-time bucket or touchdown means something to someone), the NFL has plenty of situations that can result in bad beats.
For the rest of the NFL season, we’ll relive the pain and misery by breaking down the worst beats every week. After all, one person’s bad beat is another person’s payday.
Here are the worst beats from Week 5.
Bucky Irving’s Fumble Leads To TNF Craziness
Not only did the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons face off in one of the best Thursday Night Football games we’ve ever seen, but they also played in a game with multiple bad beats for Buccaneers bettors.
With a three-point lead and the ball in Falcons territory with less than three minutes left, the Buccaneers seemed poised to put the game away. Instead, rookie running back Bucky Irving fumbled, allowing Atlanta to tie the game and eventually win 36-30 in overtime.
Adding insult to injury, the referees missed a facemask call on the Falcons on Tampa Bay’s last drive in regulation, which would have essentially ended the game. Instead, the Bucs had to kick the ball back to Atlanta, which capitalized by tying the game.
https://x.com/BadSportsRefs/status/1842043563388936671
New York Picks Up A Giant Block
The 1-3 New York Giants closed as 7-point road underdogs in their game against the 3-1 Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, making them one of the biggest betting underdogs of the week.
Things got off to an ugly start for the Giants when running back Eric Gray fumbled on the one-yard line, which the Seahawks returned for a touchdown.
But New York recovered, clawing back to take a 23-20 lead in the fourth quarter. However, that lead appeared to be in peril when Seattle lined up for a 47-yard field goal with a minute remaining.
But, for the first time in a long time, someone stepped up and made a play for the Giants. Isaiah Simmons blocked the field goal, which was returned 60 yards for a touchdown by Bryce Ford-Wheaton.
Talk about a bad break for Seahawks bettors.
https://x.com/NFL/status/1843068270930522128
Niners Choke Away Big Lead At Home
Like the Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers were one of the biggest betting favorites of Week 5, closing as 7.5-point home favorites against the Arizona Cardinals.
Not surprisingly, the 49ers raced out to a 23-10 lead at halftime and seemed well on their way to an easy victory. The Over looked like a lock to hit as well.
Shockingly, neither of those things happened. San Francisco went scoreless in the second half, in part due to losing starting kicker Jake Moody to an injury. Meanwhile, the Cardinals roared back to win 24-23 on a late field goal in the fourth quarter.
Not only did the Niners blow a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, but the Over also failed to hit as well. They had a chance to win it at the end, but Brock Purdy threw a game-sealing interception.
https://x.com/Underdog__NFL/status/1843065458913902654
Cowboys Come Back To Stun Steelers
After a 90-minute weather delay, the Dallas Cowboys faced off against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football in a battle between two of America’s biggest (and most hated) teams.
After a quiet first half that produced just nine points, things picked up in the second half as the teams combined for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The Steelers seemed poised to win and cover the 2.5-point spread when they took a 17-13 lead with four minutes left.
But then Pittsburgh’s defense, which had been phenomenal all night, finally ran out of gas. It allowed Dak Prescott to march 70 yards down the field and hit receiver Jalen Tolbert for the go-ahead touchdown with 20 seconds left, ruining the night for Steelers bettors.
https://x.com/JoriEpstein/status/1843153014288494894
Botched Field Goal Hurts Bengals Bettors
The Cincinnati Bengals’ game against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday was an instant classic, featuring 79 points, nearly 1,000 yards of total offense and one of the best plays you’ll ever see from reigning MVP Lamar Jackson.
https://x.com/NFL/status/1843016242103210426
While the Bengals led for most of the afternoon, they were unable to close out the game. Joe Burrow threw a costly interception late in the fourth quarter that led to Justin Tucker’s game-tying field goal, forcing overtime.
Cincinnati had another chance to win the game in OT after Jackson fumbled, setting up the usually automatic Evan McPherson for a game-winning 53-yard field goal. Unfortunately, he missed due to a bad hold, giving the Ravens the ball back.
Derrick Henry promptly ripped off a 51-yard run and Tucker drilled the walk-off field goal, plunging the Bengals to 1-4 with another crushing defeat.
https://x.com/ImKyleMangum/status/1843026209531416728
College Corner: UConn & Temple Combine For Maybe The Worst Bad Beat Of All-Time
While this article is primarily about NFL bad beats, we’d be remiss not to mention this one from the college football ranks.
After closing as 3.5-point underdogs in their game against UConn on Saturday, Temple had the ball at the UConn one-yard line with three seconds left. Down by three, they seemed guaranteed to cover regardless of whether they scored or not.
The only way they wouldn’t was if UConn forced a turnover for a touchdown. Of course, that’s exactly what happened.
Not only did Temple’s Brotherly Shove attempt fail, but it also resulted in the ball popping out and being scooped up by UConn’s Jordan Wright, who returned the fumble 96 yards for a touchdown.
While UConn didn’t need the points, it resulted in one of the worst bad beats we’ve ever seen. Our hearts go out to Temple +3.5 bettors everywhere.
https://x.com/SickosCommittee/status/1842708383356342569
Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images
