Who is Offering Early Value for Super Bowl 51?
Posted by Joe Solari on Sunday,April 10, 2016 12:28, EDT in
The 2016 NFL regular season is still five months away, but sportsbooks have already released the Super Bowl 51 NFL online betting odds. Between now and the end of the season, we should witness plenty of movement in the NFL betting boards. In the meantime, let’s take a look at the teams that offer early value for Super Bowl 51.
Who is Offering Early Value for Super Bowl 51?
Carolina Panther vs. History
Coming off a season where they went 15-1 in the regular season, before reaching the Super Bowl and suffering a tough loss to the Denver Broncos for a 17-2 overall mark, there’s definitely a lot to hope for in the 2016 Carolina team. After all, Cam Newton and his offense showed that they could hang with the best of the best and Luke Kuechly and gang look the part of maintaining their ball-hawking ways in the defense. And with the majority of the team’s core set to remain the same, Carolina can certainly go the distance next year. That said, repeating their 2015-16 run won’t be easy, as history is not on their side. Primarily, the last team to lose a Super Bowl and come back the next year to win it was the Miami Dolphins in 1973. Making matters more complicated, the last team to lose a Super Bowl and come back the next year was the Buffalo Bills in the 1990s. With that, it will be a tall order for Carolina to make the Super Bowl again, leave a lone win it, despite the fact that they are looking hellishly good.
Pittsburgh Steelers Poised for a Big Year
The Steelers were one of the best teams last year and they had they not been bugged by injuries, they’d have performed better than they did. Their strong showing when Ben Roethlisberger came back to the team and their decent playoff run was evidence of what they can do when fully healthy. With Big Ben healthy next season, and the trio of Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell and DeAngelo Williams at his disposal, Pittsburgh’s offense will be crazy to face. Meanwhile, the Steelers’ defense improved a lot last year and there is room for improvement in the D via the NFL Draft. With such a balance, the Steelers will be among the teams to watch for in the odds to win Super Bowl 51.
Can the Denver Broncos Repeat their Unprecedented Super Bowl 50 run?
Even with future Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning no longer in the picture, Denver should be able to just fine. This is a team that has won five straight AFC West titles and has had the best defense in the NFL for the last couple of years. As for the offense, 5th-year Arizona State product Brock Osweiler was splendid in his brief time in charge of the offense when Manning was injured, and with the tools and valuable experience under his belt, he should be more than capable of keeping the Broncos competitive all the way to the playoffs. It, however, remains to be seen if Denver can conquer the heavyweights in the AFC, including Kansas City, Indianapolis and New England.
New England Patriots Always Mean Business
This one is actually a no-brainer. As long as Bill Belichick is in New England and Tom Brady is healthy, the Patriots will always be a force to reckon with, and the upcoming season should be no different for the 2015 Super Bowl Champs who’ve won more Lombardi Trophies than any other NFL team over the last decade.
Best of the Rest: Seattle, Arizona and Green Bay
Russell Wilson is a terrific QB and Seattle’s Legion of Boom is a proven defense, but without Marshawn Lynch, it begs to question how far the Seahawks (who sputtered last year) will be able to go the distance. Elsewhere, Carson Palmer and his solid receiving corps—led by Larry Fitzgerald—showed us that they can carry Arizona to great heights. Their inadequate postseason experience and the manner in which they were flatfooted by the Carolina Panthers will, however, remain a concern about whether they can weather the heat in the playoffs.
Green Bay and the mercurial Aaron Rodgers will always be fun to watch, but if the Packers can’t solve their defensive issues, it will always be the same case of so close yet so far for them. The likes of Baltimore, Dallas, Minnesota and Kansas City have too many upsides as many as their downsides, so they will rise and fall almost similarly.
My Best Value Super Bowl 51 Picks
Best Favorite Pick: New England Patriots (+550)
Best Sleeper Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers (+900)
Best Longshot Pick: Minnesota Vikings (+2000)
