The Indianapolis Colts have plenty to gain by going 0-16. Finishing off a winless season will ensure the Colts the No. 1 pick in the draft which will likely lead to them taking Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck.
Sure, it may not be a Super Bowl, but at least it's something to look forward to for fans of the hapless team. They're not the only ones who stand to benefit from the Colts' football ineptitude this season.
A California man stands to win $10,000 if the Colts finish the season 0-16. Beyond the Bets reports (with a hat tip to Larry Brown Sports) that "Pete" placed a $10 prop bet on the Colts finishing the seaosn winless after news first broke of quarterback Peyton Manning's neck injury. That same injury eventually caused the All-Pro quarterback to go on injured reserve for the season.
Now, with Indy limping into Foxboro the owners of an 0-11 record, Pete is getting closer and closer to cashing in big time.
"My rationale was simple: Peyton has made a ton of money in his career already, why chance it if this thing is serious?" Pete told Beyond the Bets. "We're not talking about some ligament damage in a knee, we are talking about his spine and neck. There is no way a multimillion dollar enterprise like Peyton, Inc., is going to take any chances or rush a neck injury."
On Aug. 5, Pete placed his $10 bet on the Colts going winless, as he was getting 1,000-to-1 odds that it would pay out.
"From Weeks 1 to 5, I was watching for their final scores, but I wasn't too interested in it because I was betting on games each week that meant more to me. When St. Louis and Miami were winless after their bye, I started to think that maybe the lockout affected these guys more than normal."
Of course, the Chiefs and Dolphins would eventually win some games, leaving the Manning-less Colts as football's only winless squad.
It's safe to assume that Pete will have his eyes on the Colts the rest of the season, starting with this week's trip to New England. After taking on the Patriots (as roughly a three-touchdown underdog), the Colts will finish the season by going to Baltimore, hosting division rivals Tennessee and Houston and finishing the season by traveling to Jacksonville to play the Jaguars.
Pete told Larry Brown Sports that he feels "good, but not great" about his prospects of winning the bet.
Need photographic evidence? Check out a photo of the online bet from Pete's Twitter page.
