Sports for the remainder of 2020 are unsettled, but PointsBet and FOXBet have risen to the challenge with custom bets, just in time for the resumed NFL season.
The resumption of the NFL season is a big deal to sports bettors. From wagering on the weekly games to betting on season-long futures, billions of dollars will be bet. While many sportsbooks have a lot of betting options, some bettors crave off-the-board action; a few online sportsbooks are offering these off-the-board bettors the option to create their own unique prop bets.
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FOXBet and PointsBet Encourage Bettors to Get Creative
FOXBet and PointsBet are now accepting custom bets from its members through social media or email. Bettors can tweet at @FOXBet with the hashtag #custombet or @PointsBetUSA with their own ideas for a prop bet. However, the online sportsbooks make the final decision on accepting a custom bet and how to price it.
Currently, both sportsbooks have several season-long custom prop bets available for those who want something different. Most of those props center around expected starters at key skill positions.
A few of the listed props at PointsBet and FOXBet only feature the option to bet the Over on a total, while other props offer both sides of the bet. PointsBet Director of Communications, Patrick Eichner, points out that if the NFL season doesn’t fulfill a roster of 16 games, these bets will be voided.
“Typically, our Name-a-Bet option is a game-by-game ordeal,” saidEichner. “Throughout the entire NFL offseason, we’ve been going with season player props, especially in response to trade news, such as DeAndre Hopkins going to Arizona, or the free agent moves like Teddy Bridgewater joining the Carolina Panthers.”
Examples of Custom Prop Bets
A full section of FOXBet’s NFL menu is dedicated to custom bets. Instead of listing by teams, the website features tiered props, much like multi-leg parlays, which are grouped by payout.
Some examples on FOXBet include:
- An all-Pennsylvania Super Bowl between the Steelers and Eagles priced at 100/1
- Tom Brady scoring two or more rushing touchdowns this year at +110
- The Buffalo Bills making the playoffs and Stefon Diggs recording1000+ receiving yards at +150
- A bird gauntlet, in which the Dallas Cowboys win a game against all 5 NFL teams with bird names (Cardinals, Eagles, Ravens, Falcons, and Seahawks)
- Any division with all four teams making the playoffs +2000
- All four NFC West teams making the playoffs at +2800
FOXBet also includes comments from their on-air personalities when it comes to custom bets. For example, Nick Wright and Colin Cowherd took opposing sides on Brady’s move to Tampa. Cowherd offered +250 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to make the playoffs and the New England Patriots to miss the postseason, but Wright took the opposite for +333.
Eichner noted that both PointsBet and FOXBet are limited to what they can offer, while abiding by state regulations on customs bets.
Sportsbooks offering custom bets will generally only feature big names, avoiding side players who may not get much time on the field. For example, the Buccaneers offered props on Rob Gronkowski and Mike Evans, but they aren’t taking bets on second-year wideout Justin Watson; Watson is a candidate to fill the slot of Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, or Chris Hogan in the Brady substitution.
Uncertainty is one arena in which PointsBet will not engage players; situations such as where certain players will end up this season. Those bettors who are certain they have inside knowledge on who will sign Antonio Brown or Josh Gordon are out of luck; no custom wagers will be taken on that.
With major league sports still up in the air, due to COVID-19, custom bets may be the best way for dedicated sports bettors to stay in the game.
