More contest carnage.
That’s what an upset-filled NFL Week 2 unleashed on the contestants in Circa Survivor, the richest football handicapping contest in history with a $25.017 million prize.
A week after the Los Angeles Chargers eliminated almost one-third of the record field of 25,017 entries, another 8,253 entries were knocked out Sunday in upset losses by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6,061 picks), Chargers (1,357) and Baltimore Ravens (835).
That left only 8,464 entries, or 33.8 percent of the field, entering “Monday Night Football,” where there were 146 selections on the Los Angeles Rams.
Incredibly, 42 contestants who paid $1,000 per entry failed to submit a pick in Week 2.
All 49 remaining contestants who paid $100,000 each to enter the Circa Grandissimo high-stakes Survivor contest submitted their picks, but 19 were eliminated — 14 by the Buccaneers, four by the Ravens and one by the Chargers.
The eliminations in both contests totaled more than $10 million in entries for the second straight week to start the season.
Tampa Bay bettors had to wait out a weather delay of two hours, 12 minutes caused by lightning before getting dealt a 23-19 loss to the Cleveland Browns as an 8½-point favorite.
Baltimore, also favored by 8½, squandered a 17-9 fourth-quarter lead in a 24-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints, who scored a tiebreaking touchdown on quarterback Tyler Shough’s fourth-down sneak with 1:28 remaining.
The Raiders upset the Chargers 26-14 as 6½-point underdogs behind Kirk Cousins’ three touchdown passes.
Survivor awards its prize pool to the last person (or people) standing. Five entries finished a perfect 20-0 last season and split the $18.7 million pool for $3.74 million each. In both Survivor contests, contestants pick one NFL winner each week, with no point spread involved, but can use each team only once. The contest runs during the 18-week NFL regular season and also features two holiday weeks.
Prediction markets
Analysts are saying the 2026 football season – for both college and the National Football League – will give the clearest indication yet of how prediction markets are affecting state regulated sports wagering.
Casino.org, an independent online gaming authority, reported last week that prediction markets recorded more than $5 billion in trading volume over the first NFL weekend, their two biggest days ever. The American Gaming Association has projected that sports betting this year would stall for the first time since 2018.
At the same time, New York sports betting handle fell 15.3 percent in August, while New Jersey’s handle is down nearly 4 percent through July. Nevada sports betting handle for August is expected to be reported next week.
Calling sports prediction markets “backdoor sports betting,” AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said the platforms regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are “dangerously misleading … by marketing sports wagers as an investment.”
Survivor elimination bonus
Boomer’s Sportsbook is offering a $50 bonus bet to any bettor that was eliminated from Circa Survivor. To qualify, a bettor must show proof they were knocked out and Boomer’s will credit them with a $50 bonus bet. Email knockout proof to support@betwithboomer.com to get the bonus bet. Limit one per customer.
August heats up inside Atlantic City casinos
Atlantic City’s total gaming revenue fell 3 percent year over year to about $532 million in August, as a record-setting comparison from 2025 and calendar differences weighed on results.
Brick-and-mortar casino revenue improved over nine of the past 10 years but failed to match August 2025’s record, while internet gaming — the only segment to post year-over-year growth — recorded its lowest monthly gross gaming revenue since February, according to figures published by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Atlantic City’s sports-betting gross gaming revenue also remains below last year’s pace. Through August, operators’ sports wagering GGR was down about $11 million, or 2.8 percent, from the same period in 2025. Stockton University gaming researcher Brian Tyrrell said prediction markets trading sports contracts may be having an impact.
Despite the August decline, 2026 remains ahead year to date, with brick-and-mortar casino revenue surpassing $2 billion and total gaming revenue topping $4.5 billion.
Tyrrell cautioned that GGR is becoming a less reliable measure of industry profitability because of differences in operators’ expenses, business models, revenue-sharing agreements and promotional spending.
Contact Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X. Contact David Danzis at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0378. Follow @AC2Vegas_Danzis on X. Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.
