Super Bowl LV - Predictions & Betting Odds

• In the 54 championships that have been played since the NFL’s 1966 season, the AFC (formerly AFL) and the NFC (formerly NFL) have each won an equal number of trophies, with 25 Super Bowl wins and 2 World Championship Games going to each conference during that span.
• The AFC has won six of the last ten Super Bowls as well as five of the last six.
• In the entire history of the league’s championship games, only seven franchises have won consecutive Super Bowls, the most recent being the New England Patriots in 2003 and 2004.
• Three football franchises have failed to win consecutive Super Bowls, with the Buffalo Bills having the most losses in a row with four starting in 1990 and stretching though 1993, and still with no rings.

The only thing we know for sure at this point about Super Bowl LV is that it will be played on February 7, 2021, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida and it will be called by TV announcers Jim Nantz and Tony Romo.

The big question, of course, is which two teams will be competing under the lights of the next Big Game, and that is still TBD until the end of December, so meanwhile, the oddsmakers have begun to speculate with predictions and odds for potential winners.

It’s still anybody’s championship, but there are certain favorites (plus underdogs and also-rans) in this race, so we take a closer look at these teams who are expected to make a run at Super Bowl LV greatness in 2020/2021 and then make our pick at the end.

Odds taken June 30, 2020 from DraftKings Sportsbook.

Even the favorites of this bet are technically considered underdogs (+) so this is more of a hunch bet for your favorite team.

Last offseason at this time, the top three teams on this list were the New England Patriots (+1700), the Kansas City Chiefs (+600), and the Los Angeles Rams (+3300).

The Baltimore Ravens have moved to the second spot on this list despite their recent inability to win in the postseason, posting an 0-1 record in their last two playoff appearances.

Favorites to Win Super Bowl LV

The major offensive playmakers of the defending SB Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, are returning (QB Patrick Mahomes, TE Travis Kelce, WRs Tyreek Hill and Sammy Watkins) plus the front office used the draft to add a dual-threat running back, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, and the franchise tag to make sure NT Chris Jones would be staying.

The draft made the talented Baltimore Ravens even better, their league-leading run game improved with the addition of rookie running back J.K. Dobbins and the middle of their defense upgraded by drafting linebackers Patrick Queen and Malik Harrison.

A good bet to win it all are the San Francisco 49ers, ready to avenge last year’s SB loss with the same cast of offensive playmakers (QB Jimmy Garoppolo, TE George Kittle, WR Deebo Samuel) but now they’ve added two-star rookies – WR Brandon Aiyuk and DT Javon Kinlaw – plus brought in one of the best veteran tackles in the league, Trent Williams.

Underdogs to Win Super Bowl LV

If ever Drew Brees and his New Orleans Saints are set to make another Super Bowl run it’s this season, with a stronger front line now including rookie star guard Cesar Ruiz, plus another deep threat receiver, Emmanuel Sanders, to play alongside Michael Thomas and give opposing secondaries even more trouble than before.

All eyes are on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this season – they were already good, but with the addition of GOAT quarterback Tom Brady and his trusted sidekick, tight end Rob Gronkowski, this team could shock the world with TB12’s seventh ring, which would truly end the connection with his previous employer, Bill Belichick, and the New England Patriots.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones pulled the plug on his head coach and brought in Super Bowl-winning Mike McCarthy to see if he can figure out how to translate all that talent (QB Dak Prescott, RB Ezekiel Elliott, WRs Amari Cooper, and rookie CeeDee Lamb, their 9th ranked defense) into postseason wins.

No Chance to Win Super Bowl LV

As much fun as it will be to watch the Cincinnati Bengals play with rookie quarterback phenom Joe Burrow under center throwing to healthy veteran receiver A.J. Green and star rookie Tee Higgins, they are still a “win challenged” team run by a young coach, Zac Taylor, and most likely have little chance of playing any football in January.

Though the addition of arguably the best athlete in the draft, LB Chase Young, does make the Washington Redskins better, they’re still a bit of a mess, thus the change in head coaches, with Ron Rivera now in charge of getting production from this team, his young QB Dwayne Haskins still getting used to the league.

Few oddsmakers believe in QB Gardner Minshew and his Jacksonville Jaguars, as evidenced by their last-place finish on this list, but placing the franchise tag on DE Yannick Ngakoue and selecting LB K’Lavon Chaisson and CB C.J. Henderson in the draft will go a long way towards improving their 24th ranked defense.

Pick: In a perfect world, SBLV will be the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, the next chapter in the Patrick Mahomes v Tom Brady battle, and when that smoke clears, I have to pick the GOAT every time, the Bucs and Brady to win Super Bowl LV.