The Tennessee Titans overcoming a late 14-point deficit on the road at Miami on Monday night put an exclamation point on a weekend of exciting football. It also ruined the bets of many like Jim Rome, who picked the Dolphins to win and took the advertised -10.5-point spread.
Rome could’ve gotten down when he saw that the writing was on the wall for the wager, but he let listeners in on a little secret Tuesday.
“If I pick a team and I lay the points, and I see that they’re not gonna win that bet, I privately root for the underdog to come back and win,” he said. “I’m just gonna be real with you.”
The Titans finding a way to come back and win 28-27 made for a better story for Rome. A Dolphins win and him losing the bet doesn’t offer a lot to discuss, but the Titans doing something that was in rarified air gave him something to chew on.
“Given the amount of money I bet on that game, I get way more out of good content than I do a winning bet,” Rome said. “You know what I’m saying? Does that make sense to you? For the amount of money that I wagered on that, I get way more return on my investment in Tennessee coming back and stabbing Miami in the heart. I would rather that happen than me winning that bet. Cause the bet means nothing really in terms of money.”
Jim Rome did admit that he ended up breaking a cardinal rule he set for himself when it came to betting on the NFL.
“I made a rule for myself. I said this before the game, I will never, ever lay double-digit points in an NFL game ever again. The NFL is so unpredictable, and it’s way too big a number.
The rule lasted about 5 minutes, and Rome ended up losing the bet.
“So I am reinstituting the rule,” he said. “I will never, ever lay double-digit points in an NFL game ever again. Until the next time I break that rule.”
