The Super Bowl is three days away and the bets are starting to trickle in to sportsbooks for both the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. Caesars has 22 pages of wagers that customers can make, while other facilities are offering a myriad of bets relating to the big game.
We at iGamingPlayer wanted to get in on the fun and offer a little guidance for those who are still deciding on what bets to make.
So we gave our writers a mythical $100 and told them to place the cash on a bet they felt the best about for Sunday. We got quite a varied selection of bets and have listed them below, as well as why they felt so good about it.
Take a look and see if there’s a wager you like.
Mahomes’ Ankle not an Issue
Roger Gros
Pick: Patrick Mahomes Over +18.5 yards rushing (-120 at BetMGM)
One of the elements of Patrick Mahomes’ game is his legs. He salvaged many a busted play by finding a seam rushing for a first down. And the Chiefs often have designed rushing plays for Mahomes, but they probably won’t be part of the game plan in the Super Bowl because of the high ankle sprain Mahomes suffered in the divisional round game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Now, Mahomes has averaged around 20 yards rushing per gaming for the last four seasons so +18.5 isn’t a big edge. But Mahomes is something of a Superman in playoff games and all it would take would by one gaping hole by the usually reliant Philadelphia Eagles defense. But it’s that exact defense that will blanket the receivers so here’s a hunch that Mahomes will take off for a nice run at least sometime during the game.
Time for MVP Tight End?
Pauly McGuire
Pick: Travis Kelce MVP (+1000 at Caesars)
A tight end has never won the MVP of the Super Bowl, but if there’s anyone to finally do it, then it’s Travis Kelce from the Kansas City Chiefs at +1000 odds. The Chiefs have a bunch of injured wide receivers and JuJu Smith-Schuster might not play, so Mahomes will have to rely heavily on Kelce to provide the bulk of the offense. Kelce is technically a tight end, but he’s really an oversized wide receiver. If you like Kelce to win the MVP, then he’ll probably score multiple touchdowns. So, fire away on an additional prop bet for Kelce to score two or more touchdowns in the Super Bowl.
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Riding the Eagles Straight Up, Moneyline
Frank Legato
Pick: Eagles ML (-125 at bet365)
The Eagles simply have no weakness at any position, while the Chiefs’ Mahomes is not likely to be 100 percent due to that high ankle sprain. That’s an injury that normally puts a player out up to six weeks, and he’s sure to have aggravated it in the AFC Championship game.
Robert Mims
Pick: Philadelphia -1.5 (-110 at bet365)
The line opened as a pick ’em but then moved to 2.5 in favor of the Eagles before settling at 1.5. In games where both teams are relatively even, I always lean toward early money. Early money comes in before public money. Public money is usually wrong. The Eagles have covered both of their playoff games against the spread. The Chiefs are 1-1. Go with the streak and not against it. Eagles cover and win Super Bowl 57 by a score of 30-24.
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Gainwell Benefits from Strong Offensive Line
Jess Marquez
Pick: Kenneth Gainwell over 19.5 rushing yards
The single best player in this game is Patrick Mahomes, but the best position group by far is Philadelphia’s offensive line. While the toe taps and one-handed catches from DeVonta Smith, A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert are nice to look at, true Philly fans know that this team lives and dies with the running game. And what better way to keep Mahomes on the sideline than by matriculating that ball down the field? Gainwell is hot, and two first downs are all you need. Book it.
Smith Catches Chiefs Off Guard
Brian Robin
Pick: DeVonta Smith Over 5.5 receptions (+120 at BetMGM)
This is a tricky bet, because Smith and his 95 catches for 1,196 yards and seven touchdowns has been an afterthought in the postseason. He’s averaged only 48.5 receiving yards in the Philadelphia Eagles’ two playoff games.
But as usual with bets like this, context is king. The Eagles outscored both their two other playoff opponents and easily rammed the ball down their throats accordingly.
Now, the plot changes. The Eagles have to keep pace with the most prolific offense in the league, which means Smith’s role reverts back to his regular season escapades, where he averaged 5.5 receptions and 70.4 yards per game. In his last six regular-season games, Smith surpassed 65 yards five times. He’s been targeted 10-plus times in 10 of the last 11 games.
Along with that, Smith gets those targets against a Kansas City defense 19th in the league in receiving yards allowed.
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