The NFL season is down to the last 12 teams. What that means is that the playoffs are about to begin, and if you haven’t been following the league this season, you probably need to get brushed up on who the favorites are to win the Lombardi trophy in New Jersey this coming February.
With the seedings set, the odds for each of the remaining teams have also been released and to no one’s surprise, the favorites to win it all are the 13-3 Seattle Seahawks at 2/1. The Seahawks have been one of the shortest odds throughout the year and it figures that with the NFC going through Seattle and that dynamite fan base, it’s going to take a complete game on both sides of the ball from the other five NFC teams if they want to unseat the ‘Hawks.
The second favorites heading into the wild-card round is the number 1 seed in the AFC, the Denver Broncos at 3/1. Of particular note are the two teams that rank next to Seattle and Denver: the New England Patriots and the San Francisco 49ers.
Both teams have been priced at 7/1 to win the SuperBowl yet while the former enjoys the benefits of a bye week in the Wild Card round, the 49ers must win at the most, three road games, if it has any shot of making it back to the big dance. It’s a tall order, but one that bookmakers believe San Fran is more than capable of doing.
The second seed in the NFC, the Carolina Panthers, follow suit at 10/1 with the Green Bay Packers and the Cincinnati Bengals both at 16/1.
The first real surprise from these updated SuperBowl odds is the 25/1 figure attached to the New Orleans Saints. The team has been mediocre on the road this season, but it still has the kind of offensive potency led by Drew Brees that can really dominate a game. Keep an eye on those odds because – if you want to know – the Baltimore Ravens had similar odds heading into the playoffs last year.
And we all know how that turned out, right?
Joining the Saints at 25/1 are the Indianapolis Colts and the Philadelphia Eagles, followed by the Kansas City Chiefs at 30/1 and the San Diego Chargers at 40/1.
