Prior to this Super Bowl, a Patrick Mahomes team has never been a postseason underdog in 13 playoff games spanning five seasons.
If the current odds stand at kickoff on Sunday, that streak will come to an end when the Kansas City Chiefs face the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII. At BetMGM and many other mobile sportsbooks, the Chiefs are 1.5-point underdogs.
Approximately 68% of BetMGM’s nationwide handle and 67% of tickets feature wagers on the Eagles (-1.5 points). In Ohio, favoritism for the Eagles is even more pronounced.
The sportsbook reports that a whopping 80% of the point spread handle and 75% of the tickets in Ohio favor the Eagles. Revenge could be on the minds of Bengals fans after a crushing 23-20 loss to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
We heard there is a big game this week 🏈 pic.twitter.com/W19wUrYexU
— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) February 7, 2023
On the moneyline, the Eagles (-125) have received 49% of all wagers and 49% of BetMGM’s handle in Ohio. By comparison, only 42% of moneyline wagers nationwide are on Philadelphia. In terms of the points total of 50.5, the over represents about 64% of the handle for wagers across the country but only 51% in Ohio.
Props galore
While BetMGM has taken large bets on a bevy of Super Bowl props, the sportsbook did not disclose what state the bettors are in. One bettor placed a $2,500 wager on Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell (125/1) to win Super Bowl MVP. Gainwell, the Eagles’ third-leading rusher, has steeper odds to capture MVP honors than at least a dozen other players in Sunday’s game.
BetMGM also took three large wagers on the exact score of the Super Bowl. One bettor put $5,000 on the Chiefs to win by a score of 33-30 (200/1). Another bet will pay out $400,000 on a $1,600 wager (250/1) if Kansas City defeats Philadelphia 31-26. A $2,500 bet will pay $625,000 (also 250/1) if the game is scoreless at halftime.
Someone’s calling their shot 👀
One better has placed $5,000 on the Chiefs beating the Eagles by an exact score of 33-30 …
They would win $1 MILLION if it hits 😳 pic.twitter.com/bzOIPkUUwi
— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) February 9, 2023
Another Ohio sportsbook, BetRivers, reported taking several notable props from customers in the Buckeye State. One bettor placed $1,500 on Dallas Goedert over 45.5 receiving yards (-113). BetRivers also took a bet of $1,261 on Jalen Hurts’ longest completion to fall under 37.5 yards (-118).
Since suffering a shoulder injury in December, Hurts has struggled with his accuracy on deep passes. Over the first eight weeks of the season, Hurts received a high grade of 93.5 on deep throws, according to Pro Football Focus. Since then, his grade on those passing attempts dipped considerably to 71.3. Hurts also averaged 8.4 yards per attempt (YPA) in the first half of the season but just 7.1 YPA in the second half.
In terms of parlays, BetRivers wrote a five-leg, same-game parlay for $500 with a potential 30/1 payout. The bettor needs:
- A.J. Brown anytime touchdown
- Travis Kelce anytime touchdown
- Jalen Hurts anytime touchdown
- Chiefs moneyline
- Over 49.5 total points
Caesars Sportsbook in Ohio also took substantial wagers on two parlays. A $50,000 two-leg parlay will pay $102,248 using an alternate spread of Eagles +4.5 and an alternate total of under 54.5 points. Caesars also booked a $5,000 bet on this four-leg parlay that has odds of +475:
- Mahomes over 1.5 passing TDs
- Hurts pver 1.5 passing TDs
- Eagles moneyline
- Over 50 total points
This year’s Super Bowl marks the first time Ohio bettors can wager legally on the big game. Sports betting went live in Ohio on New Year’s Day when a host of mobile sportsbooks made their Buckeye State debut.
Photo: Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images
