With the kickoff to the new NFL season just over a week away there’s a new favorite on the odds to win Super Bowl 51.
For months the New England Patriots have been the pick to win Super Bowl 51, but that suddenly changed this week after the Green Bay Packers were moved to the top of the pile.
On the latest Super Bowl odds the Packers are a +600 favorite, followed by New England at +650. The Patriots of course will start the season minus quarterback Tom Brady thanks to his four-game suspension. That leaves Jimmy Garoppolo in charge of the offense.
Meanwhile, Green Bay starts this season with a big piece of their offense returning. Jordy Nelson missed all of last season after blowing out his knee in the preseason. His return should be a big boost for QB Aaron Rodgers, who hooked up with Nelson for 13 touchdowns in 2014.
If you want to see how an injury can completely change a team’s Super Bowl odds the preseason has delivered two prime examples in the Minnesota Vikings and the Dallas Cowboys.
Just two days ago the Vikings were considered to be a legitimate Super Bowl threat and were listed at +1800 on the futures. After starting QB Teddy Bridgewater suffered a major knee injury in practice ending his season the Vikings’ odds plummeted to +3300. Unless Minnesota makes a move they’ll start the season with veteran Shaun Hill at quarterback.
The Cowboys were listed at +1800 on the Super Bowl futures last week. Not anymore. Tony Romo suffered a broken bone in his back which will sideline him anywhere from 6-10 weeks according to the estimates. With Romo out, the Cowboys’ odds dropped to +2800. His replacement, rookie Dak Prescott, has impressed in the preseason but he wasn’t supposed to be thrown into the fire so soon.
And one team’s surprise pick for their starting quarterback didn’t have as much effect on the odds as you might expect. The defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos have the unenviable task of trying to replace a future Hall of Famer in Peyton Manning. Making it even harder on them was backup QB Brock Osweiler’s defection to the Houston Texans.
Heading into the preseason it looked like the job was Mark Sanchez’s to lose – and he lost it to unknown Trevor Siemian. With Siemian set to make his first career pass attempt in Week 1 the Broncos are listed at +1800 on the futures.
Heading back to the top of the odds list, following Green Bay and New England to start the season are the Seattle Seahawks at +900 and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals all at +1100. Keep an eye on these odds after Week 1 when the Panthers and Broncos get a Super Bowl rematch and the Patriots get the Cardinals.