OK, we know sports betting is illegal in Atlantic City casinos. The state legislature fixed that in 1991, and it’s not worth digressing into that history.

But if you want some skin in the football action this fall, at least a couple of casinos are happy to let you do it. You can’t place bets, but if you can pick winners, you’ll be a winner yourself.

Players at the Borgata can go to the “Pick the Pros” kiosks (near the Gypsy Bar and the My Borgata center) once a day and choose the winners of the upcoming weekend’s football games. The person who picks the most winning teams each week gets $30,000 in cash. Plus, 500 players will be randomly picked to receive $50 in free slot play. When the season ends, players will be entered into another drawing, where 1,000 people win up to 1,000 in free slot play.

Poker players at the Tropicana will have a chance to enter a 10-by-10 pool – like you have at the office – for the Monday Night Football game. All week, cash game players who have a straight get beaten by a flush or higher hand get to pick a box on the grid. Before the Monday night game starts, numbers will be chosen for the sides of the grid. If your box matches the score at the end of the first and third quarters, you win $250. Match the halftime score and walk off with $500, and the person in the box with the final score wins $1,000. If a prize isn’t claimed, it goes into the final-score jackpot.

I’m sure other casinos have similar promotions, but these are the ones I know about. Just look for signs and kiosks wherever you play to see if your favorite property has one.

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