I like to gamble on sports, but only in very small amounts. Right around this time last year a friend of mine was going to Vegas and asked me if I wanted to place any bets. I was THIS CLOSE to giving him $20 to put on the Giants to make the Super Bowl from the NFC. The odds at the time were 8:1 (not to win it, just to get there), and I felt like the Giants defense was setting them apart as the team to beat in the NFC.
In the end, the 8:1 odds seemed too small and I put $20 down on a 5-team parlay instead. The parlay failed miserably. The Giants made it to the Super Bowl. I could have won $160. Oh well.
That got me thinking, if I had $100 right now to bet on who would WIN the Super Bowl, based on current Vegas odds, here’s how I would divvy the money.
$25 on the Redskins (at 25/1 would win $625) – The Redskins have shown that they can run the ball effectively when they need to (see the end of the Dallas game) and they have a QB who can avoid dumb mistakes and make some plays when the stars are aligned.
$25 on the Cardinals (at 40/1 would win $1000) – The NFC West is awful. Seattle, SF, and StL are a combined 4-12 right now. This division is the Cards to lose, and if they can finish 11-5 (which isn’t a stretch if you look at their schedule) they might even have home field for a game or two in the playoffs. Oh, and Kurt Warner’s been there before, so there’s that.
$25 on the Titans (at 10/1 would win $250) – I’ve been high on the Titans since I caught some plays of their Week 4 win against Minnesota. Their defense is nasty. And they’re running game is solid with Lendale White smashing and Chris Johnson dashing. And Don’t forget: Kerry Collins has Super Bowl experience. This team is made to win close games in the bitter playoff cold, but strong enough on defense to beat San Diego, Denver, or Indy if they needed to. The odds aren’t great, but I like them enough that I’d put some money on them.
$25 on the Jaguars (at 15/1 would win $375) – The Jags, who are 3-3, were my pre-season pick to win the Super Bowl. They’ve got a tough road ahead of them plyaing in the AFC South, but thier running game and heady QB give them an advantage in my mind…as long as they can actually get to the playoffs.
So there you have it. If I had $100 to waste on NFL Futures, that’s where I would put my money. I’ll try to remember this post in February to see if I would have made any money.
If you’re not into sports, I apologize for wasting the last 3 minutes of your life. If you are, I’d love to hear your picks for the Super Bowl now that we’re almost halfway into the season.