Super Bowl Lviii Way-too-Early Odds (AFC)
With this year’s Super Bowl falling out of the headlines, let’s take a look at next year and what teams are the best bets to win Super Bowl LVIII. Many people celebrated future bets when Jalen Hurts’ hail-mary pass attempt hit the ground. This article will make sure you are celebrating next year as well.
AFC Favorites
Kansas City Chiefs +550
With Patrick Mahomes on the career chase of Tom Brady as the G.O.A.T. The chiefs will need to add a couple more rings to help his case. The good thing is that they still have Travis Kelce and Mahomes, along with a vastly improved offensive line that allowed zero sacks in Super Bowl LVIII.
The Chiefs won’t need to address skill positions as much, if at all after Mahomes proved he can win MVP with the departure of Tyreek Hill. Their defense played well last year but could definitely get stronger against the run, which can luckily be found in this year’s draft.
The secondary could also use a veteran free agent at cornerback or safety to add depth in case of injury. Unfortunately, the chiefs are not sitting great with their salary cap situation.
Overall, with no team winning back-to-back Super Bowls since the New England Patriots in Super Bowls 38 and 39, the odds are risky.
However, they have made five straight AFC Championship appearances and are my pick to return to that game; getting them at plus money, knowing they will at least be one of the final four teams standing still, makes this a profitable bet.
Buffalo Bills +600
The Bills were the hot pick last year to win the Super Bowl before the season, and during the regular season seemed to still be one of the favorites. However, they struggled late and lost at home to the Cincinnati Bengals in the divisional round.
The fact of the matter is they rely way too much on Josh Allen to save their offense. The thing is, they have good-to-great playmakers with Stefon Diggs, Gabriel Davis, Devin Singletary, James Cook, and the mid-season acquisition of Nyheim Hines.
However, the offensive line is what is holding this team back. Similar to the Chiefs when they lost to the Tampa Buccaneers in the Super Bowl, the Bills simply need to give Josh Allen more time.
A better running game will also help tremendously since Josh Allen accounted for 34 percent of their team’s running yards last year. They still managed to rank top 10 in the league for total rushing yards. However, relying that much on scrambles and designed QB runs don’t bode well for Allen’s longevity.
The defense doesn’t need any major changes in order for this team to make the Super Bowl. The return of Von Miller will tremendously help the pass rush, and Matt Milono and Tremaine Edmunds are one of the best linebacking duos in the league.
The secondary is loaded with talent but getting older. They could look for mid-round picks to address this for the future. Overall, only getting plus 50 more odds than the Chiefs look to put your money elsewhere.
Cincinnati Bengals +900
The Bengals definitely proved me wrong when I said they would miss the playoffs last year. This had nothing to do with any doubt in Joe Burrow’s play. However, I did not see the offensive line improving that much in one year.
Absolutely loaded at the skill position, the Bengals have, by far, the best wide receiving core in the league with Ja’marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd. Joe Mixon will most likely be cut this offseason to save cap space as he enters his seventh season and has not been the cleanest on the field.
However, in today’s NFL, the running back position can receive production from many different players and shouldn’t be a position the Bengals need to address to win the Super Bowl.
Defensively this is a unit that definitely plays above what the roster on paper would say. With that said, you can’t always count on players to continue their level of play and can always add more talent.
The scary thing for the Bengals is that Burrow, Chase, and Higgins will all need contracts in the next two seasons. So, they can either sell out for the Super Bowl and address defensive needs or keep one of the NFL’s best offenses together for years to come.
Overall, I trust Joe Burrow in the playoffs more than Josh Allen, as well as the Bengals running game, which in the playoffs is one of the best ways to predict the winning team. Beating the Chiefs two seasons ago and coming to a field goal away this past season definitely gives me confidence in the team.
