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Remember February? Of course you do. It was the last time you saw an NFL game. Oh man those were good times. Even Seahawk fans have to admit that heartbreaking football is much preferable to no football. And no football is what we’ve had to endure for the last five months.
But the intolerable wait is almost over, which is great, because my tolerance is can no longer tolerate this football-less paradigm. The preseason (I know, I know, it barely counts as football) will kick off in just over two weeks with the Steelers and Vikings meeting in the Hall of Fame Game on Sunday, August 9th. From there, it’s just a short five-week run to opening day on Thursday, September 10th; the Steelers will once again be featured, but this time will face the defending champs from New England on TNF.
As we head into the 2015-16 season, suspensions continue to dominate the NFL headlines. The likes of Tom Brady, Le’Veon Bell, Josh Gordon, Greg Hardy, Justin Blackmon, Dion Jordan … the list goes on … will start the season watching from the sidelines.
Offseason injuries have also taken their toll on some teams already. Disappointingly for both Jags fans and sack-enthusiasts the country over, 3rd-overall pick Dante Fowler Jr. will be in civvies all year thanks to an ACL tear, as will the Broncos’ third-round pick, TE Jeff Heuermann, and prize offseason acquisition, RT Ryan Clady.
With all the injuries and suspensions to date, not to mention free agent signings and the 2015 draft, the Super Bowl 50 futures have changed somewhat since February, which was the last time we took a look at the numbers. One thing that remains the same, though, is that Seattle is still on top. The running game may take a bit of a hit with the departure of center Max Unger, but the addition of a big-play tight end in Jimmy Graham suddenly makes the offense pretty scary. Not as scary as the defense but, then again, what is?
The new odds for all 32 teams are below. Take a look and see how your squad trended over the long, football-free summer you just endured.
Super Bowl 50 Futures:
Seattle Seahawks: 5/1
Green Bay Packers: 13/2
New England Patriots: 9/1
Indianapolis Colts: 10/1
Denver Broncos: 12/1
Dallas Cowboys: 18/1
Philadelphia Eagles: 22/1
Arizona Cardinals: 25/1
Baltimore Ravens: 25/1
Pittsburgh Steelers: 30/1
Cincinnati Bengals: 30/1
Detroit Lions: 30/1
Carolina Panthers: 40/1
Houston Texans: 40/1
Kansas City Chiefs: 40/1
New Orleans Saints: 40/1
San Diego Chargers: 40/1
Miami Dolphins: 45/1
San Francisco 49ers: 45/1
St Louis Rams: 50/1
Buffalo Bills: 50/1
New York Giants: 50/1
Atlanta Falcons: 55/1
Minnesota Vikings: 55/1
Chicago Bears: 75/1
New York Jets: 100/1
Cleveland Browns: 150/1
Oakland Raiders: 150/1
Washington Redskins: 150/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 200/1
Jacksonville Jaguars: 225/1
Tennessee Titans: 250/1
(Photo credit: Philip Robertson from New York, NY, USA (Loudest crowd roar at a sports stadium Seahawks-10) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo may appear cropped.)
