We take a brief break from the weekly angst over the roughing the passer penalties in the NFL to talk cold, hard cash.
Anthony Prince got his money.
Eric Dickerson wants to get paid, too.
Prince isn't a big name like Dickerson, who leads a group of Hall of Famers who are threatening to follow in Terrell Owens' footsteps and boycott future induction ceremonies if the NFL doesn't give them health insurance and a share of league revenues.
How much? How about $300,000 annually for each Hall of Famer.
Seems like a long shot.
Then again, Prince was initially spurred when he tried to cash his ticket.
Prince is the football fan who made some serious greenbacks when FanDuel goofed up and gave him exorbitant odds on the Broncos' comeback last week.
After initially refusing to pay up, the online betting company made good on the ticket.
Prince made a $110 bet at the Meadowlands Racetrack in New Jersey, at FanDuel's new sports book, and was handed a ticket at incredible 750-to-1 odds with about a minute left as the Broncos trailed the Raiders by 2 points on their final drive last week. Denver kicked a field goal with 6 seconds left to win 20-19.
That meant a payoff of more than $82,000.
But wait.
FanDuel said its automated system mistakenly generated long odds in the final moments of the game when it should have calculated his odds at 1-6, meaning a bettor would have to wager $600 to win $100.
The company initially refused to pay the bet placed at its sports book at the Meadowlands Racetrack, saying it isn't obligated to pay for obvious errors.
FanDuel reversed field after consulting with state gambling regulators, however.
"We want sports betting to be fun," FanDuel said in a statement. "So, this one's on the house. We are paying out these erroneous tickets and wish the lucky customers well."
So, Prince and another 11 customers who capitalized on an 18-second computer glitch to place their bets, all got paid.
SHOW US THE MONEY
Some of the best men ever to play in the NFL want a cut of the action.
In a strongly worded letter sent to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith and Hall of Fame President David Baker — and obtained by The Associated Press — 21 Hall of Fame members cited themselves as "integral to the creation of the modern NFL, which in 2017 generated $14 billion in revenue."
Among the signees were Dickerson, who is listed as chairman of the newly created Hall of Fame Board the group has formed; Jim Brown; Joe Namath; Lawrence Taylor; and Sarah White, the widow of Reggie White.
There were questions, though, about how well-organized the group was. Two players whose names are on the letter said they were not part of the boycott effort. Another name on the list was Carl Ellard, but no one by that name has played professional football. Former Vikings defensive end Carl Eller, however, is a Hall of Famer.
Jerry Rice, whose name is on the letter, said he wasn't on the Hall of Fame Board. And in a statement on Twitter , the former wide receiver said he plans to support the Hall of Fame and "looks forward to attending the 100th anniversary in 2020."
Kurt Warner also released a statement on Twitter that said he wasn't made aware of the letter and said his name was mistakenly put on it. He said he supports the efforts for better benefits for all retired players and doesn't believe in boycotting the Hall of Fame.
Other takeaways from Week 3 include players rallying around Dolphins defensive end William Hayes, who tore his right ACL while trying to avoid landing on Oakland quarterback Derek Carr and comply with the roughing the passer rules that are being emphasized this season. Jon Gruden lamented a lack of pass rushers on the Raiders' roster three weeks after shipping Khalil Mack to Chicago and the Bills mistook Madison, Wisconsin, for Minneapolis.
WHAT ABOUT US?
San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman summed up a lot of defenders' feelings when he retweeted a video clip of Hayes getting hurt Sunday while trying to avoid landing on Carr.
"They don't care about the rest of us getting hurt. Long as the QB is safe," Sherman tweeted.
Broncos nose tackle Domata Peko concurred with Sherman's sentiment.
"We get offensive linemen falling on us all the time," Peko said. "We get 600 pounds on top of us when two guys land on us, and they don't say nothing about that."
During the Steelers-Buccaneers Monday night game that featured four roughing the passer flags, Texans star defender J.J. Watt tweeted, "Roughing the Passer calls are absolutely out of control."
MACK ATTACK
The Raiders (0-3) haven't generated much of a pass rush since trading Mack to the Bears.
"It's hard to find a great one," Gruden said Wednesday when asked about edge rushers. "It's hard to find a good one. It's hard to find one."
There's a great one in Chicago, where Mack has four sacks and the Bears are alone in first place for the first time in five years.
The Raiders are one of three winless teams and they're last in the league with three sacks.
MIDWEST MISTAKE
The Bills got the last laugh for their geographical gaffe .
Upon arriving in Minneapolis on Saturday, they tweeted a short video about their 944-mile flight from Buffalo, where a Bills helmet showed the point of departure and an airplane the route. Only, instead of placing the Vikings helmet at their destination in Minnesota, they had it in Madison, Wisconsin.
"We actually play in the other Minnesota," the Vikings retorted on Twitter.
"Glad we found the right Minnesota," the Bills responded following their stunning 27-6 win .
