December 16, 2020
With just three weeks left in the NFL season, time is running out for teams to make a late postseason push and the playoff picture is beginning to come into sharper focus.
It also means that the time to cash in those preseason future bets and season-long props is right around the corner, assuming you're one of those lucky enough to hit during a wild year in the NFL. For example, we began the year tracking this odds for just the Eagles, but with them all but being eliminated from serious contention — and their players struggling to do much of anything offensively — we had to pivot to a look at the best from around the NFL.
From who will lead the league in passing yards to who is most likely to win Defensive Player of the Year — and everything in between, including the Super Bowl winner — we've compiled some of the most common props and futures below in order to keep you posted on how your bets are looking as we head down the stretch.
All of the odds have been assembled from TheLines.com, which collects lines and odds from DraftKings, FanDuel, BetRivers and UniBet to provide contrasts for bettors to get their money in the best they can. Here's how things stand with three weeks of games to go before the postseason:
It will be interesting to see how the new NFL playoff format changes things this year, with just one team in each conference getting the bye. The Chiefs are almost a lock to be the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and that's at least part of the reason they have the best odds to win the Super Bowl — the other part being that they look like far and away the best team in the NFL.
Then, there's a bunch of NFC bunched up as they continue to jockey for the top overall seed in their conference. Once the dust settles on that battle, you should see one emerge as a heavier favorite to take the title.
Here's a look at the current top five teams, according to DraftKings:
Team (W-L) | SB Odds |
Chiefs (12-1) | +180 |
Packers (10-3) | +650 |
Saints (10-3) | +700 |
Rams (9-4) | +1100 |
Bills (10-3) | +1200 |
After those five, there's a cluster of four teams not far behind: the Steelers (+1300), the Seahawks (+1400), the Bucs (+1400), and the Ravens (+1600). Then there's a major drop-off, with the next closest team, the Titans (10th overall), at +2800.
There is a pretty big drop off after the top five, with the Seahawks, Buccaneers and Bills tied at +1700, the Ravens at +2200, and then the Colts, Titans and Browns all sharing +3000 odds.
Not surprisingly, this is a two-man race between Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers. And while the former is the clear favorite, the latter made some inroads in the last week, cutting Mahomes' lead over him in the odds more than in half. Last week, the Chiefs QB was at -500 to Rodgers' +400. This week, after Mahomes threw three interceptions as Kansas City squeaked out a win in Miami while Aaron Rodgers had another 3 TD, 0 INT performance for Green Bay, it's considerably closer...
Player | Stats | MVP odds |
Patrick Mahomes, KC | 4,208 yds, 33 TD, 5 INT | -200 |
Aaron Rodgers, GB | 3,685 yds, 39 TD, 4 INT | +175 |
Those two are so far ahead of everyone, it's not even really worth talking about any other candidates.
It appears that when the season is over and the year-end awards are handed out, it will once against be going to pass rusher, which is where it had gone for five straight years before cornerback Stephon Gilmore took home the award last season. And depending on how the last three weeks play out, it could be going to a familiar name.
Aaron Donald won the award in 2017 and 2018 and remains among the favorites to win the award for 2020 as well. But he'll have to pass the current favorite, T.J. Watt of the Steelers, whose brother J.J. is a three-time DPOY himself. Also in the hunt is Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who has had a stellar season for the better-than-expected Cleveland Browns.
Player | Stats | DPoY odds |
T.J. Watt, PIT | 12 sacks, 19 TFL, 7 PD, INT, FF | +180 |
Aaron Donald, LAR | 12.5 sacks, 10 TFL, 4 FF, FR | +200 |
Myles Garrett, CLE | 10.5 sacks, 9 TFL, 4 FF, 2 FR | +350 |
There hasn't been any change in this since last week, but if the Chargers continue to struggle and the Dolphins continue to impress under Tua Tagovailoa, this gap could shrink significantly.
Player | Stats | ROY odds |
Justin Herbert, LAC | 3,467 yds, 25 TD, 10 INT | -900 |
Tua Tagovailoa, MIA | 1,214 yds, 9 TD, 1 INT | +1000 |
Justin Jefferson, MIN | 65 Rec, 1,078 yds, 7 TD | +1700 |
Also, Justin Jefferson is having one of the best seasons ever by a rookie receiver. He should be higher here.
Player | Yards | Odds |
Derrick Henry, TEN | 1,532 | -228 |
Dalvin Cook, MIN | 1,352 | +158 |
This one is going to be interesting, and definitely the one bettors are going to have to sweat out until the final Sunday of the NFL season. There are currently six receivers within 106 yards of current receiving leader Travis Kelce, including teammate Tyreek Hill.
Player | Yards | Odds |
Travis Kelce, KC | 1,250 | +260 |
Tyreek Hill, KC | 1,158 | +411 |
Davante Adams, GB | 1,144 | +433 |
DK Metcalf, SEA | 1,180 | +439 |
Stefon Diggs, BUF | 1,167 | +489 |
DeAndre Hopkins, ARI | 1,155 | +496 |
This one could change considerably this weekend, as Kelce and Hill will be facing a stout Saints defense while the guy with the longest odds of anyone listed above, DeAndre Hopkins, will be facing an Eagles defense that could be without 3/4 of it's already suspect secondary — just ask DK Metcalf and Devante Adams, two guys ahead of him that have already feasted on the Birds' defense.
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