Raiders — yes, the team from Vegas — crush bettors with crazy bad beat on spread vs. Broncos

Billy Heyen

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Raiders — yes, the team from Vegas — crush bettors with crazy bad beat on spread vs. Broncos image

The Las Vegas Raiders kicked a field goal as time expired on Sunday.

No, this wasn't a game-winning kick. It wasn't a game-tying make, either. But for those who had bet the spread on the game against the Denver Broncos, it changed everything.

The spread was either 7.5 or 8.5, depending on the book. The Broncos were favored to win by more than a touchdown. And in the final seconds, Denver held a 10-point lead. 

That's when chaos ensued.

The Raiders completed a pass to Tyler Lockett that took him to the 33-yard line. Yes, field goal range, but with five seconds left, Lockett was still inbounds, and the Raiders didn't have any timeouts. That'll do it, right?

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Wrong. Because the tackler, Brandon Jones, wouldn't let Lockett get up, and the officials threw a flag for delay of game.

That flag came with a five-yard penalty, but more importantly, the infraction stopped the clock.

The Raiders had one more play, down 10 points, and decided to kick a field goal and get a few more points.

Daniel Carlson's kick didn't leave any time on the clock. 

And for good measure, the total for the game had settled at 40.5 points. This made it 24-17, 41 points.

Here's a look at the sequence:

There were some happy folks on the other side of this bad beat, of course.

But what a way for a game to end, both meaningless and quite filled with meaning.

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Senior Editor