AlexanderP
Did you watch the Hall of Fame Game? If so, two things: (1) you’re a braver soul than me, and (2) my condolences to your Sunday afternoon.
The NFL preseason is a funny thing. It’s incredibly dull (ever since the league got rid of the NFL vs. CFL exhibition games 50 some odd years ago, anyway); yet, it signals the imminent return of the most exciting sports we’ll see all year: the NFL regular season! (I suppose I should say “arguably the most exciting sports we’ll see all year,” but I’m not going to because I’ll brook no argument.)
With the season opener now less than a month away and rosters beginning to take shape, the forecast for Super Bowl 50 (Feb. 7, 2016 at Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco) is starting to become a little more lucid. What’s that you say? How can it be more lucid when zero teams have played a meaningful snap?
I’ll tell you how: by the power of Greyskull! Er, I mean, by the power of prognostication. (It’s kind of our jam). So you may think it’s way too early to start predicting the Super Bowl winner/contenders, but our team’s extensive football knowledge, coupled with a divining rod we keep by the cleaning supplies, dictate otherwise.
Last year’s runner-up, the Seattle Seahawks, top the charts; the 2013 champs return almost all of their playmakers on offense and defense and added Jimmy Graham to help Russell Wilson in the passing game. They’re every bit as scary as the team that romped to the title two years ago.
The Patriots, meanwhile, remain the faves to emerge from the supremely competitive AFC even though Tom Brady’s status for the first four weeks of the season looks … ungood.
Check out the odds for all 32 teams, below, along with the odds for the NFC and AFC Championships and the most likely Super Bowl matchups.
Super Bowl 50 Odds:
Odds to win Super Bowl 50
- Seattle Seahawks: 5/1
- Green Bay Packers: 6/1
- New England Patriots: 9/1
- Indianapolis Colts: 10/1
- Denver Broncos: 12/1
- Dallas Cowboys: 14/1
- Philadelphia Eagles: 18/1
- Arizona Cardinals: 22/1
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 25/1
- Baltimore Ravens: 25/1
- Cincinnati Bengals: 30/1
- Kansas City Chiefs: 30/1
- New York Giants: 30/1
- Miami Dolphins: 35/1
- Minnesota Vikings: 35/1
- Buffalo Bills: 40/1
- Atlanta Falcons: 40/1
- Carolina Panthers: 40/1
- Detroit Lions: 45/1
- Houston Texans: 45/1
- New Orleans Saints: 45/1
- San Diego Chargers: 45/1
- San Francisco 49ers: 45/1
- St. Louis Rams: 45/1
- Chicago Bears: 60/1
- New York Jets: 75/1
- Oakland Raiders: 75/1
- Washington Redskins: 90/1
- Cleveland Browns: 100/1
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 150/1
- Jacksonville Jaguars: 150/1
- Tennessee Titans: 200/1
Odds to win the NFC Championship
- Seattle Seahawks: 5/2
- Green Bay Packers: 13/4
- Dallas Cowboys: 8/1
- Philadelphia Eagles: 9/1
- Arizona Cardinals: 12/1
- New York Giants: 15/1
- Minnesota Vikings: 18/1
- Atlanta Falcons: 22/1
- Carolina Panthers: 22/1
- Detroit Lions: 25/1
- New Orleans Saints: 25/1
- San Francisco 49ers: 25/1
- St. Louis Rams: 25/1
- Chicago Bears: 35/1
- Washington Redskins: 50/1
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 75/1
Odds to win the AFC Championship
- New England Patriots: 4/1
- Indianapolis Colts: 9/2
- Denver Broncos: 11/2
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 12/1
- Baltimore Ravens: 12/1
- Cincinnati Bengals: 14/1
- Kansas City Chiefs: 14/1
- Miami Dolphins: 16/1
- Buffalo Bills: 18/1
- Houston Texans: 22/1
- San Diego Chargers: 22/1
- New York Jets: 35/1
- Oakland Raiders: 35/1
- Cleveland Browns: 45/1
- Jacksonville Jaguars: 70/1
- Tennessee Titans: 95/1
Odds on the most likely Super Bowl 50 matchups:
- Seattle Seahawks vs. New England Patriots: 16/1
- Seattle Seahawks vs. Indianapolis Colts: 37/2
- Green Bay Packers vs. New England Patriots: 19/1
- Green Bay Packers vs. Indianapolis Colts: 22/1
- Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos: 22/1
(Photo credit: Intel Free Press (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode].)
