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The wait for a home Super Bowl continues thanks to the Philadelphia Eagles, who embraced the roll of underdog and trounced the Minnesota Vikings 38-7 in the NFC Championship. Thrust into the starting job after MVP-frontrunner Carson Wentz suffered a season-ending knee injury, Nick Foles proved his competency — and then some — tossing for 352 yards and three touchdowns against arguably the league’s best defense.
Foles and the Eagles are still not getting much respect, however, opening as anywhere from 5.0 to 6.5-point underdogs in Super Bowl 52. What could possibly motivate such a lopsided spread? Only a five-time Super Bowl champion quarterback, seven-time Super Bowl champion coach, and the dynasty to end all dynasties.
Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and the New England Patriots pulled off another fourth-quarter comeback against the upstart Jaguars in the AFC title game (24-20), causing the entire football world (outside of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts) to groan, “Not again.” But yes, again. Like death and taxes, the Patriots in the Super Bowl is just an inevitability we all must come to terms with.
The on-field matchup will be a fascinating test of strength on strength as the Patriots’ top-ranked offense (in terms of efficiency) meets a Philly defense that’s given up just 17 points in two playoff games. (Full breakdown coming on Wednesday in our Super Bowl 52 preview.) But, as always, the actual game is only half the story. When it comes to the Super Bowl, every conceivable tangent will be scrutinized and analyzed. The coin toss, the half-time show, the commercials: it will all be under a microscope. God forbid Tom Brady suffer another practice injury in the next two weeks; the 24-hour NFL news cycle will somehow spill over into a 25th hour, eventually collapsing upon itself like an exploding star.
Below, we continue to be part of the problem instead of the solution with early odds on everything even remotely Super Bowl-related.
Game Props
Odds to win Super Bowl 52
- Patriots: 1/2
- Eagles: 2/1
Odds to win Super Bowl 52 MVP
- Tom Brady (Patriots): 5/4
- Nick Foles (Eagles): 7/1
- Dion Lewis (Patriots): 14/1
- Rob Gronkowski (Patriots): 14/1
- Danny Amendola (Patriots): 18/1
- Zach Ertz (Eagles): 22/1
- Jay Ajayi (Eagles): 22/1
- Fletcher Cox (Eagles): 29/1
- Brandon Graham (Eagles): 29/1
- FIELD: 9/1
O/U game total: 48.5
O/U 1st-quarter total: 12.5
O/U halftime total: 24.0
O/U 3rd-quarter total: 36.5
Odds the Super Bowl goes to overtime: 74/1
Odds the winner returns to Super Bowl 53 next season: 7/3
Odds a kicker misses an extra point: 7/2
Odds on which team records more sacks
- Eagles: 9/10
- Patriots: 10/9
O/U total sacks: 4.5
O/U total turnovers: 2.5
Odds on which team forces more turnovers
- Eagles: 5/6
- Patriots: 6/5
Odds to score a defensive TD
- Eagles: 11/1
- Patriots: 15/1
Odds to return a kick/punt for a TD
- Patriots: 28/1
- Eagles: 32/1
Odds to block a kick/punt
- Eagles: 5/1
- Patriots: 6/1
Odds to score more TDs
- Patriots: 2/3
- Eagles: 3/2
Odds to throw for more TDs
- Patriots: 2/3
- Eagles: 3/2
Odds to throw more INTs
- Eagles: 5/6
- Patriots: 6/5
Odds to rush for more yards
- Eagles: 2/5
- Patriots: 5/2
Odds to pass for more yards
- Patriots: 1/3
- Eagles: 3/1
Odds both QBs throw for 300+ yards: 9/1
Odds on which player scores the first TD
- Dion Lewis (Patriots): 6/1
- Rob Gronkowski (Patriots): 6/1
- LeGarrette Blount (Eagles): 7/1
- Danny Amendola (Patriots): 9/1
- Alshon Jeffery (Eagles): 9/1
- Brandin Cooks (Patriots): 10/1
- Zach Ertz (Eagles): 10/1
- Nelson Agholor (Eagles): 11/1
- FIELD: 7/1
Odds the opening coin toss comes up heads: 1/1
Odds the team that wins the coin toss
- Defers: 1/7
- Receives: 7/1
Odds a coach challenges a play: 3/4
Odds a challenged play gets overturned: 7/2
Odds on what color Gatorade will be poured on the winning coach
- Orange: 3/1
- Blue: 3/1
- Clear: 5/1
- Purple: 7/1
- Yellow: 7/1
- FIELD: 10/1
Patriots Props
Tom Brady’s hand injury dominated the headlines pre-AFC championship. Is there anyway TB12 doesn’t suit up in the Super Bowl? Could he retire after winning his sixth ring? Could Bill Belichick, who’s going to be losing not only his OC (Matt Patricia) to the Lions, his DC (Josh McDaniels) to the Colts, but also possibly his linebackers coach and also his special-teams coordinator? As you’ll see below, the odds are better than he doesn’t don his patented hoodie, which are surprisingly short, given that he’s been hoodie-less in three of his previous seven appearances.
Odds Tom Brady doesn’t play in the Super Bowl: 999/1
Odds Tom Brady breaks the record for most TDs in a Super Bowl: 12/1
Odds Rob Gronkowski tackles someone/jumps on a defenseless player when the play is dead: 24/1
Odds on Bill Belichick’s hoodie color during the game
- Blue: 3/2
- No hoodie: 3/2
- Grey: 9/2
- Red: 54/1
Odds on number of (phantom) Tom Brady injuries reported before the game: 0.5
Odds on which body-part Tom Brady will “injure” before the game
- Right hand: 1/1
- Achilles: 3/1
- FIELD: 3/1
Odds Tom Brady retires after the game: 49/1
Odds Bill Belichick retires after the game: 5/2
Eagles Props
Nick Foles is in a very weird spot. Even if he leads the Eagles to their first Super Bowl ever and wins MVP in the process, he’ll be the team’s back-up QB come February 5th. Under contract for $7.6 million next year, is there any chance Foles gets lured away from Philly by a QB-needy team? Not likely with Kirk Cousins, Alex Smith, and Tyrod Taylor likely to be available, plus a deep QB draft.
Odds Nick Foles starts over Carson Wentz in 2018: 99/1
Odds either Foles or Wentz is not with the Eagles next season: 75/1
Odds Nick Foles starts for a team Week 1 of the 2018 season: 75/1
Odds an Eagles fan runs on the field during the Super Bowl: 50/`1
Odds an Eagles fan throws debris on the field during the Super Bowl: 33/1
Over/under number of Eagles fans arrested before the Super Bowl: 1.5
Odds Mike Vick attends the Super Bowl: 9/1
Odds Donovan Mcnabb attends the Super Bowl: 4/1
Odds Terrell Owens attends the Super Bowl: 5/1
How many times will the Eagles’ 17-year Super Bowl drought be mentioned on air during the broadcast: 2.5
Odds Doug Pederson is fired after the game: 999/1
Broadcast & Trump Props
The players are not the only ones who will be watched like hawks during the game. TV stations and commentators fight tooth-and-nail for the right to broadcast the game, which tends to be the highest-rated television show of the year, and advertisers shell out millions of dollars just for a 30-second spot. The pressure is on everyone to deliver. Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, and the team at NBC Sports have the honor this year. Will they be broadcasting to the largest audience in Super Bowl history? Not likely. Viewership numbers have trended down the last couple seasons. Will Budweiser continue its history of “winning” the commercial battle? More likely. Adorable puppies and draft horses are still trending up.
One thing that could have drummed up a little more interest in the broadcast is an appearance from our one and only President. But Donald Trump has stated that he will be eschewing the recent tradition of recording a pregame interview, likely due to his ongoing feud with the league, and the fact that FOX doesn’t have the rights this year. Something tells us that won’t stop him from a penning a few tweets.
Odds Super Bowl 52 viewership is down vs Super Bowl 51: 2/3
Odds the Super Bowl 52 broadcast will be the highest-rated Super Bowl ever: 39/1
- Super Bowl 52: 1/90
- 2018 NBA Finals Game 7: 175/1
- 2018 World Series Game 7: 185/1
- 2018 Stanley Cup Game 7: 5000/1
O/U number of times Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth are shown on screen during the broadcast: 4.5
O/U number of times the phrase “greatest of all-time” is said during the broadcast: 1.5
O/U number of times the phrase “unlikeliest of scenarios” is used during game: 0.5
Odds to win USA Today’s Super Bowl AdMeter
- Budweiser: 4/1
- Doritos: 6/1
- Hyundai: 6/1
- Kia: 7/1
- Avocados from Mexico: 11/1
- Coke: 12/1
- FIELD: 7/2
Odds on which company will air the first commercial (after the coin toss)
- Bud Light: 15/1
- Budweiser: 15/1
- Coke: 19/1
- Hyundai: 19/1
- Pepsi: 19/1
- Skittles: 19/1
- Mars/M&Ms: 24/1
- Kia: 24/1
- FIELD: 2/3
O/U commercials featuring Peyton Manning: 0.5
Odds a player in the game is featured in a commercial: 49/1
Odds a player in the game is featured in multiple commercials: 499/1
Odds to make an appearance on Saturday Night Live following the Super Bowl
- Tom Brady: 3/1
- Rob Gronkowski: 8/1
- Nick Foles: 15/1
- Bill Belichick: 499/1
Odds Donald Trump records a pre-game interview with NBC: 9/1
Over/Under number of tweets from Donald Trump during the game: 3.5
Odds Donald Trump will insult _____ via Twitter during game
- the NFL as a whole: 3/4
- any black NFL player: 3/1
- any white NFL player: 30/1
- Justin Timberlake: 39/1
- the Eagles franchise: 49/1
- the Patriots franchise: 99/1
- Tom Brady: 1000/1
Odds the winning team visits White House
- Patriots: 1/3
- Eagles: 4/5
Odds Donald Trump uses the Super Bowl as a distraction to escape the country: 999/1
Odds any player(s) makes a “statement” during the national anthem: 1/1
Odds a player(s) ______ during the national anthem
- raises a fist: 4/1
- displays a political message on an article of clothing: 7/1
- takes a knee: 8/1
- stays in the tunnel: 29/1
- remains in the locker room: 29/1
Calamity Props
When it comes to large events like the Super Bowl, anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. Super Bowls past have witnessed power outages, accidental porn broadcasts, and of course wardrobe malfunctions (more on that below). We’ve taken Murphy’s Law into account when forecasting the many miscues and acts of god that threaten to turn this year’s big game into a big disaster.
Odds there is a Microsoft tablet malfunction: 11/1
Odds the goal posts fall down: 5000/1
Odds the game gets delayed (by anything): 4/1
Odds the power goes out in the stadium: 12/1
Odds pyrotechnics start a fire in the stadium: 25/1
Odds there is a brawl on the field: 99/1
Odds there is a brawl in the stands amongst the fans: 49/1
Odds a fan streaks the field: 5/1
Odds a fan throws _____ on the field
- beer cup: 3/1
- article of clothing: 4/1
- uneaten food: 5/1
- seat cushion: 14/1
- deflated football: 40/1
- sex toy: 50/1
O/U feet of snow in Minneapolis on February 4th: 1.5
Odds it snows in Minneapolis on February 4th: 2/3
Odds on most likely weather
- Snow: 2/3
- Sunny skies: 4/1
- Sleet: 9/1
- Hail: 20/1
- Rain: 100/1
- Hurricane: 10,000/1
- Locusts: 1,000,000/1
- FIELD: 20/1
Entertainment Props
The NFL is bringing sexy back with the long-awaited return of Justin Timberlake, who will headline the Super Bowl 52 halftime show for the first time since 2004 when he infamously participated in Nipplegate. The 36-year-old singer is all grown up now and promises that he won’t make the same mistake twice. However, that doesn’t mean everything will go according to plan. There’s always a chance that a dancer could fall off the stage or that a technical miscue could derail the entire broadcast.
- Blonde: 2/1
- Pink: 5/2
- Brown: 9/2
- Green: 10/1
- FIELD: 8/1
O/U length of Pink’s rendition of the national anthem: 1 minute, 58 seconds
Odds Pink messes up the words to the national anthem: 9/1
Odds there is a halftime show sound malfunction: 11/1
Odds there is a halftime show wardrobe malfunction: 49/1
Odds Justin Timberlake does something that “breaks” Twitter: 9/1
Odds Justin Timberlake will make his entrance via
- zipline: 2/1
- car: 5/1
- motorcycle: 7/1
- jet pack: 15/1
- dog sled: 20/1
- parachute: 50/1
- FIELD: 3/1
Odds someone catches on fire during the halftime show: 25/1
>Odds someone falls off the stage during the halftime show: 6/1
O/U on the number of guest performers during the halftime show: 3.5
Odds on opening song of the halftime show
- Can’t Stop the Feeling!: 1/1
- SexyBack: 7/2
- Mirrors: 4/1
- Suit & Tie: 15/1
- Rock Your Body: 50/1
- Purple Rain: 100/1
- FIELD: 25/1
Odds on closing song of the halftime show
- Filthy: 5/2
- Supplies: 7/2
- Suit & Tie: 5/1
- SexyBack: 7/1
- Can’t Stop the Feeling: 12/1
- FIELD: 7/ 1
O/U total number of songs during the halftime show: 5.5
Odds fans boo during the halftime show: 19/1
Odds to make a guest appearances during the halftime show
- T.I.: 2/1
- Jay-Z: 5/1
- Beyonce: 6/1
- Jimmy Fallon: 6/1
- Timbaland: 7/1
- Nelly Furtado: 8/1
- Rihanna: 15/1
- Drake: 20/1
- Britney Spears: 22/1
- Snoop Dogg: 25/1
- Ciara: 25/1
- Madonna: 40/1
- ‘NSYNC: 100/1
- Janet Jackson: 200/1
