Super Bowl LV is now in the books and, with it, a number of firsts. The Big Game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offered an amazing matchup that had football fans and gamblers pacing with anticipation, but definitely did not go the way most people expected. With the NFL season having survived COVID-19, it’s now time to look ahead and try to get ready for a new era of football that will see much greater sports gambling.
The Chiefs were viewed as the favorites to win, but were only given three points by oddsmakers. That should have indicated a tight competition and a battle between two of the best quarterbacks in the league, Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady. However, what looks good on paper doesn’t always work when put into play, and Brady and the Bucs had no problem rolling over Mahomes and the Chiefs, completely controlling the game on both offense and defense.
The Chiefs only managed to score a field goal in each of the first three quarters as Mahomes was repeatedly forced out of the pocket and made to scramble. However, he showed why he deserved to be in the Super Bowl, handling the pressure like a long-time veteran. Despite continued problems, Mahomes still managed to put up more passing yards than Brady, throwing for 243 yards against his rival’s 201.
It wasn’t good enough, though. The Bucs, the first team to ever play in a Super Bowl in its own stadium, dominated from start to finish. Brady became the first quarterback to pick up seven Super Bowl titles and the first to win a fifth MVP award (the only player with five) as he led his Bucs to their first Super Bowl win since the 2002 season. It was also the first Super Bowl in which the NFL had seen the presence of a female referee, with Sarah Thomas on the field as the down judge. In a couple more firsts for the NFL, Maral Javadifar and Lori Locust became the first female coaches to win a Super Bowl title – Javadifar as the Bucs’ assistant strength and conditioning coach and Locust is the team’s defensive line assistant.
Weather could be a factor for Super Bowl 55 between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday evening from Tampa as some rain is in the forecast. Could that affect the kickers? Raymond James Stadium is an open-air facility.
The over/under for longest field goal in Super Bowl 55 is 47.5 yards, with the under a -130 favorite. Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker is one of the league’s best as he was 25-for-27 on field goals during the regular season with a long of 58, while in the playoffs he is 4-for-5 with a long of 50. Tampa Bay’s Ryan Succop has a minor advantage kicking in his own stadium and knowing the winds, etc. He was 28-for-31 on field goals during the regular season with a long of 50 and is 8-for-8 in the playoffs (Bucs have played one more game than the Chiefs) with a long of 46.
When Kansas City won in Tampa 27-24 on Nov. 29, weather was no factor. Butker was 2-for-2 with a long field goal of 29 yards and Succop was 1-for-1 with a long of only 26. The over/under for shortest make in the Super Bowl is 27.5 yards, which would mean a team kicking a field goal from around the 10. The total field goals made prop is over/under 3.5, with the under a slight -135 favorite.
The good news is that Super Bowl LV is now just four days away. The bad news is that Super Bowl LV is now just four days away. The NFL season has flown by and, while MLB, the NHL and the NBA are going to help keep professional sports action running, more football fans should try to petition their respective lawmakers to require a year-round NFL league. In the meantime, we will have to settle for what we can get, and the Big Game this weekend has plenty of action ready for fans, as well as gamblers. A look at some of the leading prop bets available at the Westgate SuperBook show what everyone thinks about this contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
To ease into things, the coin toss is leaning slightly toward tails. Many people believe that the results of the coin toss are split evenly at 50/50; however, this isn’t the case, so there is definitely some entertainment value available. Mathematician Persi Diaconis showed that the odds were 51/49, with the advantage given to the side that was facing up when the coin was flipped. This hasn’t been the case with the Super Bowl coin toss, though. The Super Bowl coin, made of silver and gold, features the Super Bowl logo on one side (heads) and the teams’ logos on the other (tails). Out of the past 27 games, tails has won 17 times, even though heads was facing up.
Westgate has a line up for whether either team will score points in the first six and a half minutes of the game. While both the Chiefs and the Bucs have extremely strong offenses, this one might be a “no” based, in part, by another trend found with Brady. The quarterback, before heading to Tampa Bay prior to the current season, was scoreless in all but one of his Super Bowl appearances in the first quarter.
The Bucs could be the first to score a penalty in the game. Tampa Bay’s defense is going to try hard from their first set of plays to stop Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill, and this could lead to an error, possibly pass interference, early in the game. Hill is also getting an Over/Under of 4.5 yards on his first rushing attempt and averaged 9.5 yards per carry this season, per NFL.com. Both teams are going to be on edge as the Big Game gets underway, and early penalties on both sides are likely.
Today, Super Squares®, the live mobile game show that launches Advertising as a Sport™, announces the World’s Biggest Super Bowl Squares Party, happening concurrently with Super Bowl LV on Sunday on February 7th where the Kansas City Chiefs will go head-to-head with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Thousands will play the football squares game using the free-to-play app while watching the NFL Championship game on television. Fans seeking a multi-screen experience will be able to join a live Twitch watch party hosted by notable NFL analyst Mike Golic, and NFL Super Bowl XLVII Champion and Commissioner of Sports at React, Matt Birk.
The football squares tournament happening on Super Squares® has been designated as a World Record attempt by Guinness World Records, allowing every participant the opportunity to help set a World Record simply by competing in the app. In addition to the Guinness World Record attempt and fun happenings on Twitch.tv, Super Squares® offers a $2.4 million prize pool, including a $1 million Perfect Game Jackpot that will be doubled to $2 million when shared with a ‘Buddy’ who may have referred the Winner to Super Squares®. The highest score during the tournament-culminating Bigger Game® event will be awarded a $80,000 Rivian Electric Adventure Vehicle, expected to roll into production later this year.
“Playing the football squares game is a tradition that brings everyone together and I’m happy we can still do so virtually this year,” said Mike Golic, notable NFL analyst and former ESPN commentator. “I’ve always been a fan of the squares game and I’m proud to lead the charge for fans to move from paper squares to Super Squares®. Mobile technology has eliminated paper in mail, maps and even Fantasy Football, and Super Squares® takes a game that millions have played on paper to the next level – just in time for a season where social distancing is keeping us apart.”
While in-person paper-based squares games usually found in offices, pubs and parties are less practical, the Super Squares® app still allows friends to play against each other using a proprietary “SkyBox” feature. To demonstrate, Golic has created his own SkyBox and is inviting “…everyone to crash my SkyBox and compare your final score to mine. I’ll award $250 from the Pro Football Hall of Game store to the highest score in my SkyBox, IF you can beat me!” Super Squares® players can enter the SkyBox by using the password “Golic” when joining gameplay on February 7th.
The free-to-play app combines the score matching elements of squares, with prediction and ad gamification, to provide a unique game show element that attracts casual and avid sports fans alike. Since the start of the 2020 season Super Squares® has already awarded over $300,000 to more than 3,000 players, and the Guiness World Record attempt will be the first time the entire nation will converge in a national tournament around the Super Bowl.
“This has been a different NFL season for all fans and I’m thrilled to be part of something that is bringing everyone together to bond over the game, but also be part of the real-time feedback for Super Bowl advertising,” said Matt Birk, Commissioner of Sports at React, the company behind Super Squares® and NFL Super Bowl Champion. “The Super Bowl is, of course, about crowning the NFL Champion, but it has also developed into a showcase for ads and people all over the country talk about advertising. Super Squares® understands this unique relationship and puts brands at the center of the action.”
Super Squares®, which piloted in May 2020, is the first reactive product showcasing the natural relationship between sports and branding. Players compete while watching live sports and are prompted to rate each in-app mobile TV commercial and then answer questions about them and are rewarded for being correct. This provides instant ad sentiment while verifying attention and ad recall, removing all the guesswork brands have about the delivery and effectiveness of their ads. These reactions provide participating brands and agencies with census-level validation of fan engagement and sentiment, measurable over time. This depth of understanding is simply not available to brands delivering traditional TV ads, even when they spend $5.5 million for a single TV spot. The live game show app provides consumers an opportunity to “get in the game” and will ultimately allow sports fans around the world to engage with all sports, no matter the league.
With the Super Bowl teams now set and the big game less than two weeks away, there’s not as much going on in football to attract gamblers’ attention. There are still plenty of prop bets and futures that look at who could be the strongest team to make a run for the Super Bowl next year, but most gamblers like to see current action. Bodog has seen NBA and college basketball wagers creep up on NFL wagers, and that trend continued this past weekend. Although the NFL was still out in front, despite only two games being played, the lead the league has enjoyed since last September is coming to an end.
This past weekend, 33.98% of the best placed on Bodog went to NFL games, but NCAA Men’s basketball grabbed 23.22% of the action. The NBA picked up 19.44%, and the combined 41% for hoops wagers took first-place at the sportsbook. Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) was up there, as well, as Conor McGregor came back into the ring. That led to UFC wagers accounting for 10.88% of the bets on Bodog.
The NHL is starting to gain momentum among sports gamblers. The hockey league took 5.83% of Bodog’s action this past weekend, beating out Germany’s Bundesliga, the FA Cup and Spain’s La Liga. These three split almost evenly the number of wagers from gamblers, combining for about 3.43% of the bets. eSports soccer was among the top ten, as well, with the GT Nations League grabbing 1.12% of the bets. It barely beat out cricket and the Big Bash League, which took 1.11% of the action.
With the Super Bowl looming and record wagers expected for the showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, gamblers gave a prelude of what to expect when the two Conference Championship Games garnered 69.46% of the attention on Bodog. The AFC game was a slight favorite, with 35.93% of the bets, while the NFC pulled down 33.53%. McGregor and the UFC ended up receiving a lot of attention, as well, with McGregor’s match against Dustin Poirier taking 11.37% of the Bodog wagers. McGregor, favored going in, fell to Poirier in Round 2, making a few underdog gamblers very happy.
For the first time in NFL history, a team will play a Super Bowl in its own stadium as Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will face Patrick Mahomes and the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs on February 7 from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The NFL will allow around 22,000 fans and ticket prices are absolutely skyrocketing with the hometown Bucs in the game.
Kansas City is a 3.5-point favorite and has won its past seven games against NFC foes. That includes last year’s Super Bowl, a 31-20 comeback victory over the San Francisco 49ers in Miami. The Chiefs are trying to become the NFL’s first repeat champions since the 2004 New England Patriots, who were quarterbacked by Brady.
The Chiefs visited Tampa in Week 12 and won 27-24 as 3.5-point favorites. That score is a bit misleading as Kansas City was up 27-10 entering the fourth quarter. Mahomes threw for 462 yards and three scores. Wideout Tyreek Hill had one of the great quarters in league history with an incredible seven catches for 203 yards and two scores in the first. He finished with 13 catches for 269 yards and three touchdowns. Kansas City failed to cover the spread and has covered just once in its past 10 games.
It’s now down to just two teams in the NFL, both ready to fight in Super Bowl LV to determine who will be crowned champions of an odd, but successful, season. The Green Bay Packers hosted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers yesterday while the Buffalo Bills traveled to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Kansas City Chiefs for the Conference Championship Games and, although the inclement weather that had been forecast never appeared, all four teams created some storms of their own. In two weeks, football fans will gather around the TV to watch two of the greatest quarterbacks in the league battle it out.
The Buccaneers were underdogs heading into the NFC Championship Game yesterday, with the Packers getting only a slight advantage. However, quarterback Tom Brady continues to show why he could be the greatest NFL passer of all time, leading a methodic offense that chipped away at Green Bay’s defense from the start of the game. Brady, at 43 years old, is headed to a Super Bowl for his tenth time after giving the Packers a 31-26 loss yesterday and will add yet another record to his long list of accomplishments. Tampa Bay is going to be the first NFL team ever to play in a Super Bowl in its own stadium.
For all his talent and skills, Brady can’t take all of the credit for yesterday’s win. He may have thrown for 280 yards and three touchdowns, but if it weren’t for the abilities of players like running back Leonard Fournette, with his Harry Houdini-style escapes, Brady wouldn’t have gotten very far. As it was, the Packers started to mount a comeback in the second half, forcing Brady to throw three interceptions as Green Bay and quarterback Aaron Rodgers added three touchdowns to their score. It wasn’t enough, though, and the Bucs’ defense did its job and held off the rally.
There was a time that NFL fans doubted whether or not the Chiefs would have another Super Bowl appearance. But then, the 2020 season started and all doubts were removed. Kansas City dominated almost every game since Week 1 and, with some impressive offensive moves guided by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, secured a return to the big game yesterday after defeating the Bills.
Just two days from now, the NFL will settle the argument of who are the best teams in the AFC and NFC this year. The Conference Championship Games are coming this Sunday and the last four teams standing in the league this season now have everything they worked for all season on the line. There were some definite upsets along the way, which had sports gamblers more than a little upset, but it’s time to focus on what is going to happen this weekend.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Green Bay Packers get the show rolling on Sunday when they take to the gridiron to determine the NFC winner. This is going to be a rematch of Week 6, when the two teams last met. However, no one should expect the Bucs to have things too easy. In that game, the Packers came out strong, scoring ten unanswered points in the first quarter before being shut down by the Bucs the rest of the game. Tampa Bay went on to win 38-10, but this is going to be a different ballgame.
The Bucs are looking at possibly taking the field without wide receivers Antonio Brown and Mike Evans, as well as running back Ronald Jones. These three, and a few others, are being closely watched to see if they’ll be ready for the big game. On the other side, the Packers have a healthy squad with no one sitting out, although several key players are taking it easy this week. Bodog and other sportsbooks give the Packers the advantage, with Bodog listing them as -180 against the Bucs’ +160. The spread is only 3.5 (-105) in favor of the Pack, while the Over/Under of 51.5 would seem to indicate that this is going to be a battle. With potentially bad weather in Green Bay coming this weekend, this could end up being a real snowball game.
The Kansas City Chiefs have already proven themselves under head coach Andy Reid. The team has now gone to three consecutive AFC championship games, using last year’s contest as a springboard to a Super Bowl win. This time, they’re facing the Buffalo Bills and the big question on most people’s minds is whether or not Patrick Mahomes will be able to lead the Chiefs to another Super Bowl appearance. The answer is, maybe.
The Kansas City Chiefs will host an AFC Championship Game for a third straight season Sunday as they look to keep their chances of repeating as Super Bowl champions alive against the Buffalo Bills, who are 3-point underdogs despite entering on an NFL-high eight-game winning streak and taking those by an average margin of 17 points per game.
Kansas City will join the Philadelphia Eagles from 2002-04 as the only teams to host three conference championship games in a row. The common link between the franchises? Andy Reid coached those Eagles and of course now coaches the Chiefs.
No question the biggest story that looms over this game is the status of Chiefs superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes. He left last Sunday’s 22-17 win over Cleveland with a concussion in the third quarter and didn’t return. Mahomes had led Kansas City to a 19-3 halftime lead, but without him the Chiefs nearly blew it – although backup QB Chad Henne delivered on a late fourth-down conversion to clinch the victory.
The first game of the NFL’s conference championship Sunday is from the NFC as the Green Bay Packers host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a trip to Super Bowl 55 – Tampa Bay is looking to become the first team to play in a Super Bowl in its own stadium. The top-seeded Packers, though, are 4-point betting favorites.
Rather amazingly, it’s the first time that Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers will get to host an NFC Championship Game in his Hall of Fame career. It’s the second year in a row in it for the Pack as they were blown out at the San Francisco 49ers last season.
Green Bay will be on an extra day of rest as it beat the visiting Los Angeles Rams 32-18 on Saturday in the Divisional Round. Rodgers completed 23 of 36 passes for 296 yards and two scores, and the Packers rushed for 188 yards and two scores on the NFL’s No. 1 defense. That allowed them to possess the ball for more than 36 minutes. The Green Bay defense was the better unit in that game, allowing just 244 total yards.
It’s East vs. West, North vs. South for the NFL Conference games. The Divisional Round games wrapped up this weekend, giving football fans plenty of excitement and sports gamblers plenty of action. Not everything worked out as planned, but there are now just four teams remaining. The Conference Championship games will be held this coming weekend, the last hurdle between an unusual NFL season and a Super Bowl title.
The NFC North’s leaders, the Green Bay Packers, have the opportunity to give quarterback Aaron Rodgers something he has yet to accomplish. For the 16 years he has been with the team (the only NFL team of which he’s been a part), he has never been able to play an NFC Championship game at Lambeau Field. That will change this coming weekend after the Packers beat the LA Rams in decisive fashion this past Saturday.
The Packers came out swinging and never relented until the final seconds dissolved on the clock. They won without much work, taking the 32-18 victory that saw Rodgers throw for a touchdown and also run one in on his own. Through three quarters, the Packers scored on five straight drives, and the fourth quarter became a lesson on clock management.
The Buffalo Bills were first in the AFC East and, for the first time in almost three decades, are going to the AFC Championship Game. They leaped over the Baltimore Ravens this past Saturday to get to where they are in a game that was about as lopsided as they come. The Ravens were 11-5 going in; the Bills were 11-3. However, nothing went right for the Ravens, who ended the day with just three points in a 17-3 loss.
The New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NJTHA) had a leading role in helping bring sports gambling to the US. It was partially responsible for pushing the Supreme Court into sending the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) to the grave, giving states across the country the ability to develop their own sports gambling markets. Many have gone that route already and more are following, and the hundreds of millions of dollars now flowing into state coffers is a direct result of the NJTHA’s actions. Now, after almost seven years of fighting the NFL, the NBA, MLB, the NHL and the NCAA, the organization is almost ready to close this chapter and ride off into the sunset. The NJTHA and the sports leagues have reportedly settled their differences in court, with the final details to be laid out this week.
The tale goes back to 2014 when the Monmouth Park racetrack wanted to introduce its own sportsbook. The leagues got wind of it and sued the property. The next several years led to a lot of back-and-forth and orders for restitution, including the requirement that the leagues offer a bond for $3.4 million, the amount the NJTHA said it would have made if it had been allowed into the sports gambling business, which later grew to over $140 million. In September 2019, with the case still being discussed in court, the NJTHA won a small victory when the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the organization had grounds for trying to collect on that bond.
While the latest details of the case haven’t been revealed completely, a district court judge, Freda L. Wolfson, received and approved an agreement between the warring parties this past Monday. Judge Wolfson is intimately familiar with the case. Last month, had decided that the NJTHA’s claim for $140 million in damages was more than a little excessive and rejected it, but added that the money from the bond might still be on the table.
Judge Wolfson reportedly received the agreement the sports leagues and the NJTHA created last Friday before responding at the beginning of the week. The battle will come to a close with the NJTHA halting its efforts to collect the bond, as well as interest and other damages, “without prejudice,” which would give it the right to refile if it changes its mind. However, to try to ensure the final nail in the coffin is hammered into place, the two sides have 30 days to file a proposed order that would lead to a complete dismissal “with prejudice” and release the bond. If they cannot deliver that order in the required timeframe, the NJTHA might get back in the saddle to try to lasso the sports organizations once again.
The winners of Sunday’s two NFL Divisional Round games will be at a slight disadvantage from the two winners Saturday because those latter two will have an extra day of rest for conference championship Sunday.
The first game Sunday is the Cleveland Browns at the Kansas City Chiefs, who are 10-point favorites. As the conference’s top seed, the Chiefs will host the AFC Championship Game with a victory. They remain the betting favorites to repeat at Super Bowl 55.
Kansas City is very healthy coming off the bye week and having rested most starters Week 17, but it’s not yet clear if good-looking rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire will be ready after suffering an injury in Week 15 and not playing since. The Chiefs have not been a good wager for weeks this season, failing to cover their past eight games.
This was a wild Super Wild Card Weekend as the NFL Playoffs kicked off with six games. There were certainly a few surprises Saturday and Sunday, with a couple of wins that would have been almost impossible to predict. The race will tighten up even more now and this weekend’s action showed repeatedly why every play counts if you want to be a winner.
The first game saw the Buffalo Bills take on the Indianapolis Colts in a game that almost could have gone either way. The Bills were favored going into the game on Saturday, but only won by three, 27-24. The Colts had a couple of opportunities throughout the game to claim the lead, but blown calls and missed plays forced them into an early playoff exit. Bills quarterback Josh Allen was on fire, picking up 324 yards as he completed 26 of his 35 passes – two of which ended in a touchdown. The Colts missed one of their chances to pick up some points when they went for a touchdown on fourth down late in the second quarter instead of opting for the field goal. They missed the opportunity and also missed a field goal to fall short, and the Bills are back in business. This is the first time they’ve advanced to a Divisional Round game since 1995.
The LA Rams met the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday and acted like bulldogs throughout the game. The underdog team took an early 20-10 and never looked back, keeping Seattle to just 28 yards in the first half. Jared Goff got his chance to come back and shine after Rams starting quarterback John Wolford took a nasty shot to the head that required a trip to the hospital, and helped his team secure a 30-20 win, despite having three pins stuffed in a broken thumb just a couple of weeks ago. Goff wasn’t at his best, but he was good enough to keep the Rams on top and send the distraught Seahawks home.
It’s no secret that many were rooting for the Washington Football Team (WFT) as they entered the postseason. The team has dealt with a lot of adversity this season, but going up against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would prove to be a little too difficult. Brady, now the oldest NFL player to ever throw a postseason touchdown pass, showed why experience counts throughout the game as he completed the game with a passer rating of 110.7 as the Bucs took a 31-23 win. The WFT gave it a valiant effort and deserves a lot of credit for getting this far but, in the end, what they offered in the game was a chance for Tampa to figure out where it needs to tighten up as it advances in the playoffs.
This weekend marks the start of the NFL Playoffs and it’s do-or-die for several teams. Super Wild Card Weekend will see the regular season finalists begin to set the stage for who could appear in the Super Bowl, and several teams are dealing with player changes that could make or break their chances. Sports gamblers will want to pay special attention to the results before they place their bets.
The LA Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks tomorrow and will bring back tackle Andrew Whitworth. He’s been out since Week 10 due to a knee injury, but the Rams might not be able to count on the services of quarterback Jared Goff. He’s dealing with a thumb injury that, as of yesterday, had him listed as questionable for the game. For their part, the Seahawks are waiting to see if defensive tackle Jarran Reed and cornerback Shaquill Griffin will be able to play. Bodog has the Seahawks as the heavy favorites at -175 and the Over/Under sits at 42 (-110).
The Indianapolis Colts might have to play without defensive lineman DeForest Buckner when they take on the Buffalo Bills tomorrow, as he is still trying to nurse an injured ankle back to health. The good news is that he practiced yesterday, alongside safety Khari Willis, previously out on concussion protocol. However, cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and offensive tackle Will Holden are out. For the Bills, they’re going to look at how to change the playbook, with wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley listed as questionable. They practiced yesterday, but are still not 100% back in the game. Bodog oddsmakers don’t think the Colts stand a chance, giving the Bills -290 and the game an Over/Under of 51 (-105).
It’s still unclear if wide receiver Mike Evans will take the field for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers tomorrow when they face off against the Washington Football Team (WFT). His participation won’t be known until just before the game, and the Bucs are still unsure if cornerback Carlton Davis will be in. The WFT has given quarterback Alex Smith limited duty because of a calf injury and is questionable, as are running back Antonio Gibson and wide receiver Terry McLaurin. Most people never thought the WFT would make it this far and Bodog believes the team’s luck may have run out. The Bucs are getting -400 on a game that has an Over/Under of just 44.5 (-110).
There are three more Wild Card games Sunday, and NFL fans/bettors should enjoy it because it’s the last time there will be more than two NFL games played on that day of the week until next season.
At 1:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, the AFC fifth-seeded Baltimore Ravens visit the fourth-seeded and AFC South champion Tennessee Titans – who won that division for the first time since 2008. While the Ravens are playing as well as anyone except perhaps Buffalo entering the postseason, it’s a bit interesting that the Ravens and 2019 NFL MVP Lamar Jackson are 3-point favorites.
That’s because the Titans rode Derrick Henry to a Divisional Round upset in Baltimore last season and then Henry again led a 30-24 overtime upset victory in Charm City back in Week 11. Henry is a one-man wrecking ball after repeating as NFL rushing king this season with a career-high 2,027 yards. He has been historically good in his playoff career, while Jackson is 0-2 as a starting QB in his postseason career. That this is on the road may bode well for the Ravens, who are 10-2-1 ATS in their past 13 away games overall. The Titans are 1-6 ATS in their last seven games in the playoffs at home.
NFL fans and bettors are gifted three Wild-Card games on Saturday instead of the usual two because the league added an additional playoff team to each conference for the 2020 season and going forward. Thus, only the top seed in the AFC and NFC is off on Wild-Card Weekend.
Saturday’s schedule starts with the AFC No. 7 seed Indianapolis Colts at the No. 2 seed and AFC East champion Buffalo Bills. The Bills won the division for the first time since 1995 but in a way picked a bad year to do it considering no first-round bye for the No. 2 seed these days.
Buffalo QB Josh Allen had a career season and will get some MVP votes, possibly finishing third. Trade acquisition Stefon Diggs led the league in receptions and receiving yards. That offense improved so much this year that coordinator Brian Daboll likely is lured away as a head coach somewhere.
The NFL regular season is in the books and the playoffs are set to begin this weekend. With the final lineup of teams now established, it’s time for sports gamblers to dig in and place their bets on who will make it to the Super Bowl. There were certainly plenty of futures bets made throughout the season that, if they hold up, will have awesome payouts, but the picture is now clearer and the final race to hoist the Lombardi Trophy on February 7 is going to be a good one.
The Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl LIV last year and entered this season ready to defend that title. They’ve done a good job, too, and are favorites to win their second consecutive title. William Hill is giving them +150 to be crowned champs again, while the Westgate SuperBook is giving them +175. Bodog is giving them +200, PointsBet has them at longer odds, at +220, and BetMGM lists them at +240. The Chiefs, with their AFC-leading 14-2 record, get a first-round bye in the postseason and home-field advantage, and are getting a lot of support from gamblers.
On the NFC side of the house, the Green Bay Packers are receiving a lot of attention and, should they make it to the Super Bowl, could give the Chiefs a hard time. The Packers took the top seed in the conference after a 13-3 season and William Hill has them listed at +500 to win the big game. PointsBet is a little more confident, giving them +450, and the SuperBook puts them way out there at +600. Bodog thinks the Packers have a chance – although not as good as the Chiefs – and puts the line at +433 and BetMGM has them at +550.
The Chiefs have a lot of talent on the roster that was carried over from last year. However, they have also run into a little difficulty at times this year, which could be an issue in the postseason. PointsBet Senior Sports Content Analyst Andrew Mannino told Casino.org, “The Packers have an easier path through the NFC than anybody in the AFC, with the Chiefs having to deal with the Bills and the Ravens and the Steelers. In the NFC, Seattle’s a very good team, New Orleans is a very good team. But I think this is shaping up to be Green Bay’s conference.”
The NFL regular season is now officially in the books and, with it, the last push for sports gamblers before taking a look at who is in the playoffs and who has a shot at winning the Super Bowl. The Bodog sportsbook continued to see a lot of wagers on both NFL and college football games this past weekend as the final games were played but, with its season just getting started, the NBA is slowly gaining more ground. By this time next month, with only the Super Bowl remaining, NBA wagers will rule the charts.
The NFL gave Bodog 33.67% of its action this past weekend, followed by college football and its 25.8%. The college football championship game is going to be played next Monday, pitting the Ohio State Buckeyes against the Alabama Crimson Tide in what is going to be a rematch from several years ago. This game is certain to find a lot of wagers, with both teams enjoying nationwide support.
The NBA accounted for 15.74% of the wagers on Bodog this past weekend, slightly lower than what was seen a week ago. This was undoubtedly due to the final push in the NFL regular season. Men’s college basketball wasn’t too far behind, at 15.48%, a hint of what’s to come once the NFL and college football seasons wrap up. Following on the heels of football and basketball, soccer continues to grab some of the action, but not a whole lot. Spain’s La Liga picked up 1.97% of the Bodog wagers, Germany’s Bundesliga followed with 1.87%, England’s Premier League was next with 1.55% and eSoccer and the GT G-26 League rounded out the soccer segment with 1.39% and 1.31%, respectively. Table tennis continues to hang in there, capturing 1.21% of the wagers.
When the Buckeyes met the Clemson Tigers to find out if they were good enough to make it to the championship game, they found bettors giving them a lot of attention. That game was the top-ranked game on Bodog this past weekend, getting 19.13% of the action. The NFL managed to claim the second spot, with the game between the Washington Football Team (WFT) and the Philadelphia Eagles grabbing 16.82% of the wagers. Washington won that game and are headed to the playoffs after demonstrating what determination and stubbornness in the face of adversity can deliver. From an owner being called out for sexual harassment to a head coach battling cancer, the WFT has had a difficult season.
At a time when cryptocurrencies are seeing massive gains that could rival those of 2017, one exchange specializing in digital currency wants to become a more diverse platform. Eris Exchange (ErisX) wants to give its users more than just crypto options and has asked (pdf) the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for permission to include NFL futures contracts among its list of available options.
ErisX reportedly reached out to the CFTC in December, submitting a request to be able to offer “fully collateralized and financially settled contracts” that would be generated off NFL wagers, including moneyline, Over/Under and point spread futures. It explained that its target for the futures contracts are sportsbooks, vendors and stadium owners, adding, “Contrary to popular belief, licensed sportsbooks do not seek to make money based on the outcome of sporting events; rather they seek to maximize their revenue from the collection of fees.”
It all comes down to risk management for sports gambling operators and ErisX has a solid argument for its futures contracts. Sports gambling lines can, and sometimes are, skewed by the markets they serve – a sportsbook in Louisiana, for example, could have different lines than a Colorado sportsbook for a home game for the New Orleans Saints. Many industries, including airlines and large food stores, play the futures game with their prices on a daily basis, so having it come into sports gambling an outrageous concept.
Currently, most sportsbooks try to balance the odds based on different data points, but this sometimes falls short. As ErisX points out, “One notable example of an imbalanced book relates to the 2019 Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams, when an imbalance in the books caused New Jersey Licensed Sportsbooks to lose more than $4.5 million based upon the outcome of the Super Bowl. Similarly, Rhode Island Licensed Sportsbooks reportedly lost $2.3 million on a total of $6.5 million wagered on that same game – more than a third of the total volume wagered.”
