Week 7 NFL Betting Diary: Unders remain the worst
Each week, theScore's betting writer, Alex Kolodziej, will share a running diary of his Sunday experiences. Here's his seventh edition (all times PT):
6:30 a.m.: Nothing quite like waking up to a London game. I'm typically awake three-to-four hours prior to kickoff but I can't get the juices flowing for a one-game slate at 6:30 a.m.; it doesn't deserve the same pomp and circumstance as dumping a pot of coffee over my head while the "RedZone" music blares at 400 decibels. Anyway, we're up early because we have action in the Titans-Chargers game. It's time to buy low on the Titans' offense and hope the lads in London are ready to watch Marcus Mariota get sacked 32 times.
- Titans team total OVER 18.5
- Jaguars -4.5
- Cowboys/Redskins UNDER 41.5
6:33 a.m.: Titans will receive to start. Go score points.
6:45 a.m.: Tennessee starts the day off with a nice drive, covering 55 yards in just more than five minutes to go up 3-0. The Titans scored more points in 5:16 than they did in 60 minutes a week ago.
6:49 a.m.: Here's another reason why I thought Tennessee would be able to score today: opportunities. Philip Rivers connects with Tyrell Williams for a 75-yard touchdown on the Chargers' first play, and the Titans get the ball back.
6:59 a.m.: False start, stupid short pass, sack - Titans punt.
7:18 a.m.: This time, the Chargers are more methodical. They take up more than five minutes and tack on a field goal to make it 10-3.
7:23 a.m.: There's a Ryan Fitzpatrick jersey sighting in the stands. I might just go back to bed.
7:39 a.m.: The Titans are at least sustaining drives. They get to the Chargers' 15-yard line but stall, and have to settle for another field goal early in the second. 10-6.
7:58 a.m.: Tennessee forces a punt and again starts with a nice drive up to midfield before being called for consecutive penalties. I wish my family loved me as much as the Titans love killing offensive momentum.
8:03 a.m.: Tajae Sharpe comes through with a big conversion on third-and-10 to extend the drive as time ticks down in the first half. Tajae Sharpe, from? UMASS.
8:07 a.m.: There's nothing like betting a London game to set the tone for your day. I didn't expect to want to swing my foot through my balcony door this early, but after Mariota throws an interception inside the five-yard line to close the half - well, here we are!
8:24 a.m.: Chargers score again in three plays. We need touchdowns, Marcus.
8:36 a.m.: Well, would you look at that, a Titans touchdown midway through the third. Someone start the wave at Wembley Stadium, we have life. It's 17-13 Bolts.
8:54 a.m.: Punt, punt, Chargers field goal. Titans are going to get the ball with just over 12 minutes remaining.
9:01 a.m.: Ryan Succop pushes a 51-yard field goal wide left. I don't think it matters, considering Tennessee still needs a touchdown. The Chargers either need to go three-and-out or score without taking up all the eight-plus minutes on the clock so we can sneak through the back door.
9:07 a.m.: L.A. punts back to Tennessee, which will have to go 89 yards with 4:55 left and one timeout in its pocket.
9:09 a.m.: Titans run the ball three times to churn out a first down. Hey, congrats guys, you made it to the 21. How about some urgency, Mike Vrabel?
9:10 a.m.: Mariota avoids a sack and scrambles for a first down. I love me a sweat at 9:10 a.m.
9:11 a.m.: Dion Lewis very nearly broke one up the middle. He just went for 36 but it could have been 64.
9:12 a.m.: Sharpe with a first-down catch before the two-minute warning. Ball is at the 14.
9:16 a.m.: Sharpe catches a third-down pass inside the three. Please score a touchdown.
9:17 a.m.: Rush attempt goes for no gain. Real creative to let Lewis just run into four defenders.
9:20 a.m.: Mariota literally pulled a Michael Jordan in "Space Jam" and reached out for the goal line on a third-down scramble. They called him in, but replay review showed he was a few inches short. Fourth down now. I want to die.
9:26 a.m.: Play-action pass on fourth down works. Unbelievable. I'm down 24 lbs from my morning weight based on sweat loss alone. But that's a win in the most absurd fashion.
- Titans team total OVER 18.5 ✔
- Jaguars -4.5
- Cowboys/Redskins UNDER 41.5
10:06 a.m.: Are we getting peak Blake Bortles today? Because we might be. He gets sacked and fumbles in Jags territory on the first possession.
10:11 a.m.: Jacksonville holds Houston to a field goal and it's 3-0. The Jags might chew up Deshaun Watson and spit him out if the first possession was any indication.
10:18 a.m.: Keelan Cole drops a third-down pass and the Jaguars stall at the 37. Doug Marrone could have gone for it but why would you, right?
10:27 a.m.: It's 6-0 Texans late in the first. How are you going to come out in the teal uniforms and play like that, Jacksonville? Sad!
10:50 a.m.: Jags come up short on third down at their own 35, don't go for it, then shank a punt.
11:01 a.m.: Welp. Unless Jacksonville goes bonkers in the second half, this one's about over. Lamar Miller scores a touchdown to make it 13-0 before the break.
11:42 a.m.: Bortles loses another fumble and the Texans score right away to make it 20-0. Just a terrific call on my part.
- Titans team total OVER 18.5 ✔
- Jaguars -4.5 ✖
- Cowboys/Redskins UNDER 41.5
11:48 a.m.: And if it wasn't clear enough that we were getting peak Bortles today, he just got benched.
1:34 p.m.: First quarter of the Cowboys-Redskins game and the score isn't showing up on the TV feed. Considering I have the under, I kind of don't want to know.
1:35 p.m.: Meh, Redskins touchdown. 7-0. Couldn't tell you how much time is left, to be honest.
1:37 p.m.: 9:50. The Redskins scored at the 9:50 mark of the first. This game is on pace to see a billion points.
1:45 p.m.: Dak Prescott sneaks the ball on fourth-and-1 at midfield and fumbles it away. Redskins in business again. Unders remain the worst.
1:53 p.m.: Nothing better than punts from the opponent's 40 when you have an under. It's the equivalent to scoring a touchdown when you have an over. Run the ball and kill the clock, Dallas, play the field-position game.
2:09 p.m.: Rooting for punts kind of sucks but there's another at midfield for Washington with 12 minutes left in the second quarter. The things I'll do to keep my mind occupied while having an under is unheard of. I'll vacuum the entire apartment, FaceTime every member of my immediate and secondary family, play Minesweeper on Windows '98 - you name it, I'll do it to kill time.
2:29 p.m.: WE HAVE A SURPLUS OF PUNTS.
2:34 p.m.: I shouldn't have spoken - Cowboys strike on a 49-yard touchdown with 1:00 left in the second quarter. Back to playing games on a computer made 24 years ago.
2:46 p.m.: It's 7-7 at the half and we can spot 27 in the second. If it ends 21-21 and goes overtime then I start rioting.
3:12 p.m.: Redskins open the third with a 72-yard drive that stalls inside the five. 10-7 with 9:10 left.
3:20 p.m.: Dallas goes three-and-out. Punt the dang ball.
3:29: p.m.: Redskins go five plays ... and punt.
3:35 p.m.: Another three-and-out. Golly, this is addicting.
3:51 p.m.: Washington eats up about five minutes and adds another field goal as we're into the fourth. It's 13-7 and we can spot three touchdowns. I don't want to get ahead of myself here, but I can taste it.
3:58 p.m.: Welp, Dallas goes right down the field in 2:49 for a field goal. It's 13-10.
4:10 p.m.: More punts between the 40s. Still 13-10 with 6:48 left.
4:14 p.m.: OK, slight hiccup. Prescott gets sacked, loses the ball, and the Redskins score. 20-10 with 4:55 left. Remember that one easy win? Me neither.
4:19 p.m.: Dak just converted on a fourth-and-13 with 3:15 left that probably would have sealed it. I am back to being deceased.
4:21 p.m.: Hey, a Cowboys touchdown. It's 20-17 with less than two minutes left. Are you having fun yet? Because I'm not. Drain the damn clock and let's go home, Washington.
4:28 p.m.: Narrator: "They did not drain the clock, and Dallas has the ball on its own 30 with a little more than a minute."
4:29 p.m.: Thanks, narrator.
4:31 p.m.: Prescott completes a third-down pass to Cole Beasley to the Redskins' 46. You can just tell this is how it was going to unfold.
4:34 p.m.: Cowboys attempting a 46-yard field goal to tie it up at 20. My stomach has never experienced this type of pain.
4:35 p.m.: It'll be a 51-yard field goal after a snap infraction moves them back.
4:36 p.m.: DOINKED OFF THE UPRIGHT. THE KIDS HAVE WON. THE KIDS HAVE WON. THE KIDS HAVE WON. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT, THE KIDS HAVE WON (this sounds a lot better coupled with the reaction I'm currently hearing on the broadcast).
- Titans team total OVER 18.5 ✔
- Jaguars -4.5 ✖
- Cowboys/Redskins UNDER 41.5 ✔
Heroes get remembered, legends unders never die.
I don't even know what that means. I'm so slaphappy. Those were the worst three hours of my entire life.
Alex Kolodziej is theScore's betting writer. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 11 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AlexKoIodziej.