It’s all happening! And we do mean ALL. It’s that special time of the year were all four major leagues are currently playing, and there’s no better place to get your sports fix than at STN Sports Book. “This is one of the most unique and special times for our side of the counter and probably the bettors. It’s a fun time if you’re a sports fan,” said Chuck Esposito, Station Casinos’ Race and Sports Book Director.
Unlike a Jimmy Garoppolo pass to Davante Adams, the STN App never misses. With all that in mind, let’s quickly look back at the past week in sports and peek at what’s ahead on the app and at the Station Casinos Race and Sports Books…
NFL
Sunday morning couldn’t have started out better for guests, as favorites went 8-1 in the early slate. It was a better payday than that candy bar in your kid’s Halloween bag. The afternoon was less friendly than an F1 taxicab surcharge, though, as the Broncos and Bengals won outright, and the Cardinals had a backdoor cover that had bad beat written all over it.
“We were definitely on the ropes going into the afternoon games, but those afternoon games changed the entire complexion of the day,” Esposito said. “We ended up having a pretty solid day on our side of the counter. The bettors did really well on the Sunday night and Monday night games, but the consolation for us was that both marquee primetime standalone games went under.” Whereas the past few years have seen overs dominating the sports betting spectrum, unders have been the story this NFL season. Entering Week 8, unders were covering at a 63% clip, which is usually beneficial for the house. A large, large percentage of bets were on the sides of the Seahawks, Chiefs, 49ers and Ravens.
“Everything live from parlays, teasers, money lines, everything was dumping into them, and most bettors have two or more of those games on parlays,” Esposito said. “We were clearly on the ropes for the first time in a good month or so after the morning games, but the afternoon games saved us from catastrophe.”
Minnesota Vikings games will look a lot different after Kirk Cousins’ season-ending injury. The Vikings QB went down with an Achilles injury on Sunday, which prompted the Vikes to trade for “Rocketman” Joshua Dobbs. Still, the difference in spreads with Dobbs under center vs. Cousins is more dramatic than a BravoCon event. In fact, thedifference between the two is about a full touchdown.
“Dobbs has played decent enough with the Cardinals and he goes to a good post with [Jordan] Addison and [Justin] Jefferson coming back in the next few weeks, but I just don’t think it moves the needle enough for me at this spot,” Esposito opined.
Set your alarm clocks, because the marquee game of the year is set for Sunday… at 6:30 a.m. PST. The late great Matthew Perry would probably say, “Could this game BE any earlier?” The Dolphins and Chiefs will square off in Germany this weekend, with Kansas City coming in as small favorites. With the game beginning before the sun even comes up, the STN App is your friend, as it’s open 24/7 and ready to take bets morning, noon or night. Coffee could also be a helpful friend, too.
While that way-too-early contest kicks off Sunday, there’s a whole slate of games ready to happen at normal, human start times, and guests are already making their preferences known. After the Cardinals announced that fifth-round rookie Clayton Tune would start against the Browns, money poured in on Cleveland and the spread shot up a full point. The Saints have also gotten some early love, but that seems to be more of an anti-Bears bet, as guests clearly believe Chicago will trampled like the Hacienda bridge on a game day.
Last Man Standing
Don’t call ghostbusters, because the living are still among us — of course, I’m referring to live entrees in the NFL and college football Last Man Standing contests. Only 33 of the initial 6,324 entrees remain active after eight weeks of NFL games. Over in the college Last Man Standing competition, only 18 of the initial 3,223 entries are still active. Getting down to the wire!
World Series
If you haven’t been paying attention to the World Series — and judging by the ratings, you haven’t! — you’re missing some fun baseball. On Game 1, the Rangers won in walkoff fashion in extra innings. Game 2 went to the Diamondbacks, but Texas put themselves on the doorstep of a title with wins in Games 3 and 4. “It’s kind of been a mixed bag for us as far as handle,” Esposito said. “I think having Game 1 on Friday was really good. Monday night’s game saw a strong handle, too. You do see somewhat of a decrease when the games have to compete with a full Saturday of football or a full Sunday of football.” Still, Station saw $50,000 bets on the Rangers in both Games 1 and 3, which both hit. TV ratings might be bad, but payouts are good!
VGK
The Vegas Golden Knights have continued their impressive start to the season, but they aren’t totally decimating the Sports Books because the VGK has failed to cover the puck line in five games in a row — they suffered their first loss of the season during that stretch, too, as they fell to Chicago on the traditional Nevada Day afternoon game. The STN Sports Books even took in its largest hockey bet of the season so far, when a bettor placed $50,000 on the Knights to win against the Blackhawks.
“The public continues to bet the Knights, the Knights on the puck line and the over,” Esposito said. Through 10 games, the Knights have gone under the total in six contests.
Trade Alert!
On Tuesday — a day that was supposed to see a bevy of NFL trades and deadline deals — it was an NBA trade that caught the attention of the sports world. James Harden has a new area code. While you were sleeping, the 76ers dealt the disgruntled star to the Clippers for a king’s ransom. Los Angeles saw their title odds dramatically drop 10 points.
“We’ll see how he fits in on that team and how it helps that team. They definitely have three superstars on that team now,” Esposito said, referring to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George (sorry, Westbrook.) “Are there enough balls to go around? That’s the question. The three-headed monster worked with the Heat but didn’t with the Nets. With the Clippers’ big name guys, no one has been able to stay healthy on that team. If they were all healthy and locked in, they could be pretty dynamic offensively with Harden there.”
If the Clippers catch fire at some point this season, they could bring heat like a dish at Leoncito.
Bets To Know
One of the premiere horse racing events of the year takes place this weekend with the 40th edition of the Breeders Cup. In the spirit of the race, Station Books and STN will feature a $10,000 twin quinella promotion on Saturday. Pony up!
Weekly Winners
Congrats to this STN Sports bettor on the 1/2 point parlay card over the weekend. $20 to win $3,810!
-PANTHERS +3.5
-DOLPHINS -8.5
-PATRIOTS OV 46.5
-JETS -2.5
-VIKINGS -1.5
-SEAHAWKS -3.5
-BRONCOS +7.5
-CARDINALS +8.5