The clock had ticked down to zero http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/marquise-blair-jersey-authentic , and Minnesota fans were already deep into a celebration like no other.

In this city’s legal sports books, though, the outcome was still in doubt.

An extra point that wasn’t needed had to be attempted anyway. New Orleans players had to be brought back from the locker room to make a token effort to defend it.

In the minutes it took for the Vikings to finally line up and take a knee, many bettors who wagered on the point spread didn’t know whether to stand in line to cash their tickets or tear them up and toss them in the garbage.

”Millions and millions of dollars exchanged hands when they kneeled down at goal line,” said Jimmy Vaccaro, oddsmaker at the South Point hotel.

One of the most unimaginable endings in a playoff game made for some dicey moments in sports books around Las Vegas. While bettors on the money line either cursed or celebrated the final touchdown play, those who bet the point spread weren’t sure whether they were winners or losers.

If the Vikings had kicked the extra point, those who took the Saints at plus 5 1-2 points would go from winners to losers. Those who had the Vikings minus the points would swap places with them.

Just another playoff Sunday in a world where it’s not so much who wins, but which team covers the spread.

”When that play took place, the ones that knew they won were headed to the cashing line,” said Jay Kornegay of the Westgate Las Vegas sports book. ”Then the reality of the extra point came into play and everybody started talking about what they were going to do.”

The game capped a weekend that for the most part was spectacular for sports books, which won big on Jacksonville’s D.K. Metcalf Jersey , win over Pittsburgh and also cashed in on Philadelphia’s home underdog win over Atlanta.

Though many books lost money on the Vikings game, they would have been even worse off without the final touchdown because so much money was bet on the Saints to win straight up on the money line.

”We did really well overall,” said Nick Bogdanovich of the William Hill chain. ”We just murdered those two games, Jacksonville and Philly.”

Things would have been even better had Tennessee not scored a meaningless touchdown in the final seconds that pushed the game against New England past the over/under and rewarded bettors who tend to favor the over in most games.

”In our world all those games came down to the last second,” Kornegay said. ”Even in the one blowout the total was hinging on the last drive by the Titans.”

Oddsmakers said they had packed houses for both games, thanks to a strong economy and the exploding popularity of sports betting. Wagering on the NFL is up again this year, and most bookies say they expect a record Super Bowl handle, no matter which teams make it to the big game.

At the South Point, Vaccaro said he judged the crowd by the line at the hot dog cart, which was 25 long most of the weekend.

”All I can tell you is the handle is through the roof,” Vaccaro said. ”We did as much on the two games each day as we do on a full plate of NFL on a regular season Sunday. It’s incredible to see.”

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WASHINGTON — The Washington Nationals are approaching July 4 on the verge of becoming what nobody predicted them to be when the season started — a .500 club.

Washington fell to 42-41 Monday night with 4-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox, their sixth loss in seven games. Once again http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/cody-barton-jersey-authentic , they did almost enough to win, falling behind 3-0 and rallying within one before Craig Kimbrell retired Anthony Rendon with the tying run on base to end it.

Max Scherzer, who has had an impressive year at the plate as well as on the mound, ironically was done in by friend and former pitching teammate Rick Porcello, whose bases-loaded double off Scherzer in the second inning made it 3-0.

“I wish I had a lot to say about that, but I don’t really know what happened,” Porcello, who improved to 10-3, told NESN.com. “Obviously I know he’s got a big fastball and I just got lucky. He got to the top of his windup and I told myself start swinging and I hit it.”

With the loss, Washington dropped seven games behind the Atlanta Braves in the NL East.

“This is where the test is, that even when things aren’t going your way, when things are bleak Gary Jennings Jr. Jersey , when we haven’t been playing great baseball, you have to find a way to take and find certain things you are doing well and just try to build off those,” Scherzer, winless in his last five starts, told MASN.com. “That’s just what the whole team has to do.”

The Red Sox (57-29) survived solo homers by Rendon in the fourth, Daniel Murphy in the sixth and Bryce Harper in the eighth.

Reliever Joe Kelly surrendered the Harper homer to cut Boston’s lead to 4-3. Since the start of June, Kelly has pitched 9 1/3 innings and allowed 12 hits and nine earned runs.

“We’ll keep working with him, one thing that he needs to do better is tempo,” Red Sox manager Joey Cora said. “I think his tempo is going the other way instead of being more aggressive, and just grab the ball and throw it. So, we’ll talk to him.”

Boston left-hander Brian Johnson (1-2, 4.28) opposes right-hander Tanner Roark (3-9 http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/phil-haynes-jersey-authentic , 4.10) on Tuesday night.

Johnson allowed a run in four innings for the Red Sox Thursday night against the Angels in place of Steven Wright, who went on the disabled list with a knee injury early last week. Tuesday could be Johnson’s last turn in the rotation with Drew Pomeranz close to returning.

Roark is glad to put June in his rearview mirror. He went 1-4 with a 6.08 ERA in five starts and one relief appearance, surrendering 18 earned runs in 26 2/3 innings. He did show improvement last time out, allowing two runs — one earned — on seven hits over six innings of a 4-3 loss to the Phillies while sporting a mustache and mutton chops.

“Tanner pitched good enough to win and that was good to see,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez told the Washington Post. “He started off a little erratic and then all of a sudden he started getting the ball down, which is good. He pitched well.”

Roark, sounding like any respectably superstitious baseball player, told the Post he’s keeping the mutton chops.

“I feel like it’s a pretty decent look,” he said.