Doug Greenberg covers sport betting for ESPN. He previously covered sports betting, sports business and fantasy sports at Front Office Sports, VSiN and RotoWire. He lives in Chicago after growing up in Boston.
The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday, and a flurry of moves ahead of the occasion are already causing a stir in futures odds. The Jacksonville Jaguars made three big moves on defense by acquiring safety Jessie Bates III and defensive tackles Davon Godchaux and Jordan Davis, which prompted a jump from +850 to +750 to win the Super Bowl, placing them third on the odds board behind only the San Francisco 49ers (+540) and Buffalo Bills (+600).
The Chicago Bears continue to look like true Super Bowl contenders and are just behind Jacksonville at +800 in the title odds. Chicago had moved from 14-1 to 12-1 after acquiring All-Pro DT Jeffery Simmons, then further to +950 after defeating the reigning champion Seattle Seahawks (16-1) in Week 8. BetMGM recently reported a $100,000 wager on the Bears to win the Super Bowl at +700 odds, a potential $700,000 net payout.
Chicago is approaching lock territory for the playoffs at -700, per DraftKings odds, but its division rivals in the NFC North -- the Detroit Lions (-330), Minnesota Vikings (-250) and Green Bay Packers (-200) -- are all also odds-on to play in the postseason.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Rams, who began the season as big +500 title favorites, are all the way out to 12-1 and are just barely favored to make the playoffs at -108. L.A. was briefly an underdog for the playoffs at +110 after news emerged that superstar wide receiver Puka Nacua will be placed on injured reserve due to knee and toe injuries.
and subject to change.