The Los Angeles Chargers’ spectacular collapse against the Jacksonville Jaguars after leading 27-0 was mighty painful to watch, though probably not as painful as it was for one punter, whose US$1.4 million (AU$2 million) live bet on the favourite is now being called “the worst sports bet in history.”
The mystery bloke in question placed his seven-figure sum on the Chargers’ moneyline via DraftKings after the Los Angeles-based team had already secured a considerable advantage over the Jaguars. At -12,500 odds, the maximum payout only amounted to a relatively paltry US$11,000 (AU$15,750). And in that very moment, it seemed like a done deal. Free money, if you will.
But then came something entirely unforeseen happened: a lesson about the lack of guarantees afforded to us in this lifetime.
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“After one half of play for the Jacksonville Jaguars Saturday night, everyone in the NFL world started to pencil in the Los Angeles Chargers in the Divisional Round. Trevor Lawrence looked like a pumpkin. Jacksonville’s defence couldn’t buy a stop. And Doug Pederson seemingly had no answers in front of a shell-shocked crowd while chasing a 27-0 deficit,” explained Robert Zeglinski of USA Today.
“My, my, how quickly matters can shift in just over 30 minutes of play. Instead of surrendering and letting the perennially cursed Chargers cruise and advance, a 36-yard Riley Patterson field goal saw the Jaguars pull off the third-largest comeback in NFL playoff history to win 31-30 as time expired. And by the time the dust settles on this one, Brandon Staley might no longer be employed by LA.”
Sharp Football’s Warren Sharp added: “This is the first tie in NFL playoff history a team was +5 in turnover margin and lost the game.”
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The anonymous degen wasn’t exactly alone on this front. Another punter placed US$54,000 (AU$77,300) on the Chargers via Caesars Sportsbook, motivated by the promise of a measly US$1,080 (AU$1,550) payout, only to also lose the lot.
Pulling back on the bigger picture, there was another punter who had a US$40,000 (AU$57,300) futures bet on the Los Angeles Chargers to win Super Bowl LVII at 25-1 odds, which would’ve paid a cool US$1 million (AU$1.4 million) — had they not fumbled in such egregious fashion against the Jacksonville Jaguars and beyond.
Granted, if you’ve got enough money to blow US$1.4 million, US$54,000, or even US$40,000 on your vices like this, you’ve probably got enough money to sustain the whopping L. But even still, we ask for a moment of silence to honour our fallen comrades.
