One NFL bettor was blessed with the Christmas gift of a lifetime Monday in the form of a winning parlay worth $489,383. San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey played the role of Santa Claus.
The 49ers star represented the final leg on the bettor’s improbable 14-leg parlay that needed 14 different players to score a Week 16 touchdown.
The man bet just $5 and ended up cashing in on nearly half a million dollars.
The winning moment came as the 49ers had 1st-and-goal with 3:30 left in the first half. Quarterback Brock Purdy handed the ball off to McCaffrey, who punched through the defense for a 9-yard touchdown.
The winning bettor’s reaction went viral on X shortly after McCaffrey’s TD.
The $490K bet-sealing drive likely cemented the man’s McCaffrey fandom for the rest of his life.
CMC didn’t just score the TD during the drive. He also rushed for 53 yards on four carries and caught two passes for 14 yards to set it up. Every play save for a single Purdy two-yard rush was made by McCaffrey.
McCaffrey came into Monday’s contest with the second-most combined touchdowns (13 rushing, seven receiving) in the NFL. He was arguably the safest of all 14 players the bettor selected to score a TD, especially given his insane scoring streak that ended earlier this season.
Given some of the ridiculously bad beats on huge parlays over the years, nothing is guaranteed until the ticket wins.
McCaffrey showed his generosity toward his 49ers teammates — and Purdy, in particular — with his recent Christmas gesture. His generosity apparently extends to fans as well.
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