Everything that happens in sports has additional context when viewed from a sports betting perspective. From season-changing injuries to record-setting moments and so much more, the sports news cycle will constantly and significantly affect the sports betting industry.
Our Super Bowl betting buzz file, with contributions from David Purdum, Doug Greenberg and others, aims to provide fans a look at the sports betting stories that are driving the conversation leading up to the big game.
Key links: Sports betting home | NFL odds page | ESPN BET
Feb. 5: $800,000 on Eagles, $10 on offensive lineman for MVP lead notable bets
David Purdum: The big bets are starting to show up on Super Bowl LIX, some head-scratching ones, too.
For example, a bettor with BetMGM donated … err … placed a $10 wager on Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Landon Dickerson to win MVP at 1000-1 odds. An offensive lineman has never won the award.
The largest bet so far — $800,000 on the Eagles moneyline — was reported Wednesday by BetMGM and continues a trend of action on the underdogs. ESPN BET said it took a $200,000 money line bet on the Eagles (+105), DraftKings has one at +105 for $150,000, and Caesars Sportsbook reported that its largest futures bet on either team was $200,000 on Philadelphia, placed Jan. 19 by a bettor in Michigan at +275 odds. The bet would pay a net $550,000 if the Eagles win.
More bets had been placed on the Eagles’ moneyline than any other Super Bowl wager on the betting menu at BetMGM, and the majority of moneyline bets are on Philadelphia in every state the sportsbook serves, except Kansas, home to the favored Chiefs.
Kansas City was a consensus 1-point favorite Wednesday. The largest reported bet on the Chiefs was $300,000 on the moneyline at -130 odds at BetMGM.
Among the more obscure bets reported:
-
$2,000 on the final score being Chiefs 27-23 at 175-1 odds at BetMGM.
-
$83,500 on no player to have both a rushing and receiving touchdown in the game at -835 at BetRivers. The bet would win $10,000.
-
A $10 two-leg parlay on Chiefs tight end Noah Gray to score the first touchdown and Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt to score the second touchdown at 175-1 odds at BetMGM.
Feb. 4: Vegas bookmaker predicts Eagles will go off as Super Bowl favorites
Purdum: The Super Bowl point spread shifted slightly toward the underdog Philadelphia Eagles on Monday, moving from Kansas City -1.5 to -1 at multiple sportsbooks. This was the first line movement in over a week, and at least one Las Vegas sportsbook expects this trend to continue.
“The consensus opinion in our risk room is that Philly will go off favored,” John Murray, executive director at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas, told ESPN. “Call it an educated guess. We have been wrong about that before and could be wrong this time, but we think the Eagles will get there over the course of this week.”
Most of the betting on the Super Bowl will take place this week. Murray estimates only 5% of the money that ultimately will be staked on the game had been placed as of Monday.
“A lot of wise guys have been hitting props,” Murray said, “but the big wagers and the public prop wagers aren’t here yet.”
The under on Eagles running back Saquon Barkley’s longest run in the Super Bowl attracted wise-guy action at the SuperBook, which moved the line from 25.5 yards to 23.5 yards. The over/under had settled back at 24.5 yards on Monday.
Barkley (-190) has attracted the most bets and most money wagered in ESPN BET’s touchdown-scorer market.
Jan. 31: A big Kelce MVP bet among early Super Bowl action
Purdum: Highlights from early Super Bowl betting include divided money at sportsbooks on the winner, a new favorite Gatorade color and the largest reported MVP bet so far, placed on Kansas City’s talented tight end.
-
BetMGM reported taking a $25,000 bet on Chiefs TE Travis Kelce to win Super Bowl MVP, the largest reported MVP bet as of Thursday. At 15-1, the bet would win $375,000. Even with the big bet included, more money has been bet on Eagles RB Saquon Barkley than any other player in the MVP market. The largest MVP liabilities for Caesars Sportsbook, though, are on a pair of longshots: Eagles DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson (400-1) and Kansas City kicker Harrison Butker (150-1).
-
The Kansas City Chiefs remained consensus 1.5-point favorites over the Philadelphia Eagles. The line ticked up to -2 briefly on Monday, but has not seen any movement since. On Thursday, ESPN BET reported that the Eagles had attracted more money-line bets than the Chiefs in 17 out of the 20 jurisdictions in which the sportsbook operates. Arizona, Kansas and New York are the only states in which the majority of bettors have sided with the Chiefs on the money line. However, overall, the bigger bets are Kansas City, with 64.1% of the “Super Bowl winner” money wagered on the Chiefs (-125) at ESPN BET.
-
Caesars Sportsbook also reported relatively balanced action on both the money line and point spread: “A Chiefs win by exactly two or three points is currently our biggest liability,” Craig Mucklow, vice president of trading for Caesars Sportsbook, told ESPN. “In terms of total points, a high-scoring game would be a great result for customers. Right now, the over is sitting at 2-1 in terms of handle.”
-
Purple, considered a second-tier contender earlier in the week, moved into the role of favorite at multiple sportsbooks. Yellow/green/lime remains the favorite at ESPN BET. Betting on the color of Gatorade is allowed in just two states: Illinois and New Jersey. The average size of bet on the novelty Gatorade market is “$5-10,” according to BetMGM.
ESPN BET Super Bowl props that attracted the most money, as of Thursday
See more: