After 49 preseason games, beginning with a rain-shortened Hall of Fame Game between the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans and ending with Sunday night’s Washington Commanders win at the New England Patriots, real football is just around the corner. The next time the NFL plays a game, the Kansas City Chiefs will raise another Super Bowl banner, and the Baltimore Ravens will be on hand to seek revenge for their loss in last year’s AFC Championship.
The Chiefs are early three-point favorites. Patrick Mahomes is the favorite to win the MVP this year (+475), and last year’s MVP, Lamar Jackson, is paying a high-value +1800.
It’s a perfect way for the NFL to begin the new season.
New Faces at Quarterback
The 2024 season will begin with 11 teams being led by new starting quarterbacks. That becomes 12 if you don’t count the four plays that Aaron Rodgers was healthy for last year with the New York Jets.
Of the new QBs, the most is expected of Kirk Cousins. The Atlanta Falcons think that with him in town, they are instant contenders in the NFC. Cousins is +3500 to win the MVP award and the Falcons are +1300 to win the NFC.
Caleb Williams is the most anticipated of the new quarterbacks. The No. 1 overall pick leads a pack of rookie starting quarterbacks, and the Chicago Bears signal-caller is the favorite to win Offensive Rookie of the Year. He is paying +135. Commanders rookie Jayden Daniels is +500, Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos is +1000, and Drake Maye with the Patriots is +1300. (New England head coach Jerod Mayo hasn’t named his starter yet).
As for which of the new faces will be leading the Pittsburgh Steelers this season, Russell Wilson or Justin Fields, head coach Mike Tomlin promises to tell us by the end of this week.
The Chiefs Quest for the Three-Peat
No team has won three Super Bowls in a row. The great Steelers teams of the 1970s, the great San Francisco 49ers teams of the 1980s, the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s, and the New England Patriots of the 2000s all won two in a row, but they failed to win a third.
The Chiefs are the latest to try to make NFL history, and the oddsmakers like their chances. They are the favorite to win the Super Bowl, paying +500.
Of course, that just means that of the 32 NFL teams, they have the best odds. Those odds indicate just a 16.7% win probability for the Chiefs. And that is why the three-peat is so hard. Even as the best team in the league, they are big underdogs to win another Lombardi Trophy. The AFC is filled with great teams led by great quarterbacks, and a healthy Rodgers, an even better C.J. Stroud, and full seasons of health for Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert will make the path to New Orleans in February even tougher.
Comebacks to Watch
Speaking of staying healthy, the top of the odds board on who might win Comeback Player of the Year reads like a Pro Bowl roster.
The aforementioned Rodgers is the favorite at +140. Expectations are high in New York, and the Jets are +1900 to win the Super Bowl.
We didn’t see Rodgers in the preseason, but Burrow did take some snaps for the Cincinnati Bengals. He looks fully recovered from the wrist injury that knocked him out of seven games last year, and he is paying +300 to be Comeback Player of the Year (CPOY). The Bengals are paying +1300 to win the Super Bowl.
Second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson played in just four games last season, and he completed just two of those games, but the Indianapolis Colts starter is one of the hottest names coming into the season. He is +700 to win CPOY, and +3000 to win the MVP, which ties him with Trevor Lawrence and Matthew Stafford.
Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb will begin the season on the PUP list, meaning that he will miss at least the first four weeks of the season. The All-Pro tore his ACL, MCL, and meniscus last September, and he is expected to be back at some point this season. He is +1200 to win Comeback Player of the Year.
With over 25 years of experience as a distinguished sports writer for renowned platforms such as Fox Sports and ESPN, Kyle Garlett is a sports betting specialist who has been at the forefront of documenting the global surge in sports betting and online gaming. Based in Denver, Colorado, Kyle hosts an NFL betting YouTube show and podcast. Kyle also has two sports books published by HarperCollins.
Kyle graduated the Azusa Pacific University in 1996 with a B.A. Degree in Communication and Journalism.
