Every new sports season, leagues throw up their fair share of surprises. Despite what preseason predictions say, it’s always the case that some teams do better than expected and others, sometimes inexplicably, end up doing worse. You can see that in the current NBA season.
While teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder are dominating as expected, others, like the Toronto Raptors and San Antonio Spurs, are firmly in the Playoff hunt, even though few expected that a couple of months ago.
Yet, this season’s NFL can claim to be more surprising than most. Consider the team with the best record after 13 weeks, the New England Patriots (11-2). The Pats were predicted to win 9 games by most analysts, perhaps sneaking into the Playoffs.
They have already smashed those predictions, and they may even end up as the number one seed in the AFC. The Patriots’ Super Bowl odds have fallen dramatically, but they certainly aren’t alone in ascending the betting markets.
DraftKings Backs Two Surprise Candidates for Glory
Indeed, the two betting leaders for the Super Bowl with DraftKings online sportsbook football odds are the LA Rams and Seattle Seahawks. Things can change over the coming weeks, but the fact that these two lead the betting markets with just a few rounds to go is both surprising and indicative of the season we have seen so far.
It feels like anyone can beat anyone in a given week, even struggling teams have picked up big scalps here and there.
The Rams and Seahawks were both considered middle-of-the-road candidates for the Super Bowl at the start of the season, given odds of +2000 and +6000 respectively. The Rams have seen a 75% drop, whereas the Seahawks have seen about 90%. That, in itself, is not completely uncommon, but there is other important context to take into consideration, including the performances of the teams previously predicted to dominate the league.
In early September, before the campaign got underway, there were four teams head and shoulders above the rest in the betting markets – The Eagles, Ravens, Chiefs, and Bills. While there were slight fluctuations in the odds from sportsbook to sportsbook, you could more or less say they were the four co-favorites for Super Bowl LX.
Things have not really gone to plan. Only one team – the Eagles – tops its division at the time of writing. Two of the teams, the Ravens and Chiefs, have losing records and are in jeopardy of missing out on the Playoffs. It is a rare occurrence to see such movement at the top of the betting markets.
Many Things Could Change in Coming Weeks
Of course, things could turn back over the course of the season and Playoffs. Would it be a complete shock to see a team like the Ravens turn a corner and show why they were considered preseason favorites? No, it wouldn’t. Yet, with each passing week, it feels like time is running out for the teams expected to be dominant.
For fans, especially neutrals, you can argue that the season is all the more exciting. In December 2024, it felt that there were about half a dozen teams that could realistically win Super Bowl LIX. This time around, we could maybe cite twice that number.
There are teams like the Packers, Steelers, and Jaguars that we haven’t yet mentioned and who are enjoying good seasons, that could make some interesting impressions in the Playoffs. There simply isn’t any standout candidate that looks locked in for a relentless push. That sense of the unknown should make the next couple of months compelling viewing for football fans.
