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No NFL team knows how to blow a lead quite like at Atlanta Falcons, and they’ve managed to lose in an embarrassing fashion for two straight weeks. The Falcons held a 20-0 lead against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2 before ultimately losing 31-30. They followed that performance up by imploding against the Chicago Bears and losing 30-26 in Week 2. We’ll go over how Atlanta’s odds changed despite being favored overwhelmingly on DraftKings Sportsbook.
While the Falcons entered Week 3 0-2, they were actually favored at -136 against the 1-1 Bears, who clocked in at +120 at kickoff. Matt Ryan opened up the game by dialing up a deep ball to Calvin Ridley, which set up a touchdown catch for Hayden Hurst. Atlanta’s porous defense was able to hold Chicago to a field goal in the first quarter, which ended with the Falcons leading 6-3.
Atlanta built a 16-10 lead by the break and improved its moneyline odds to -357. Chicago’s odds were +265 at half time despite the fact that there were only six points separating the two teams. The Falcons’ lead really ballooned in the third quarter though.
Atlanta went on a 10-0 run in the third quarter thanks to a Todd Gurley rushing touchdown and a Younghoe Koo field goal. Falcons fans know better than to believe that winning is easy with a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter, and Nick “BDN” Foles was made for epic comebacks.
The Bears benched Mitchell Trubisky for Foles following a third quarter interception. At that point, Atlanta’s moneyline odds had improved to -2500, while Chicago sat at +1500. If you know sports, you should know that you always bet against the Falcons when they’re leading in the fourth quarter. Foles threw a pick in the end zone after replacing Trubisky, but rebounded to throw touchdown passes to Jimmy Graham, Allen Robinson II, and Anthony Miller in the fourth quarter. By the time Chicago battled back to secure a 30-26 lead, its odds had flipped to -161 while Atlanta’s dropped to +125.
Sunday just wasn’t a good day for birds. If you’re a Falcons fan, you should be mad that Dan Quinn has never heard of an in-game adjustment he liked. Philadelphia Eagles fans everywhere should be maddened after having to watch Carson Wentz lead their team to a tie against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 3. The moral of this story is that nothing is impossible when Foles is on the field. Stay tuned to see if he can pull off another miracle against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 4. The Bears have opened as +112 underdogs at home.