because he paid for the puts. $403 put is profitable if SPY drops below that strike, but if pay $1.75 per contract upfront, you have to recoup that loss as well. $403 - $1.75 = $401.25 cost basis, so to breakeven, it must be at or below that price.Say you bought a cheap put for 1 cent contract, but it isn't gonna be at the $403 strike, it would probably be like $350. It is way cheaper cost because it has such a low chance of the stock dropping below the strike