With the regular season officially in the books after the Las Vegas Raiders secured a spot in the postseason in a thrilling overtime win over the Los Angeles Chargers, the field is set. The Green Bay Packers finished with the NFL’s best record at 13-4, earning a first-round bye thanks to a tiebreaker with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who also won 13 games.
The Packers remain the betting favorite heading at +375 heading into the Wild Card round. The Kansas City Chiefs are just behind them. Despite earning a bye on the AFC side of the bracket, the Tennessee Titans are tied with the Bucs for fourth on the odds board.
Favorites to win the Super Bowl
Green Bay Packers (+375)
Aaron Rodgers & Co. remain in the top spot at +375 because the Week 18 loss to the Detroit Lions meant largely nothing as the Packers already had a first-round bye locked up. Rodgers has become the clear MVP favorite and Green Bay appears poised to make a run after last winning the Super Bowl in 2011 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Regardless the eventual outcome, the postseason will go through Lambeau Field.
Kansas City Chiefs (+450)
Even without a first-round bye, the Chiefs are still considered the class of the AFC by oddsmakers. They’ll host the Steelers on Sunday night in what could very easily be an equivalent to a bye. The season didn’t always go according to plan for Andy Reid’s squad, but they finished at 12-5 and went 9-1 in the season’s final 10 weeks.
Buffalo Bills (+700)
Like the Chiefs, the Bills had an up-and-down season but finished strong with four straight wins and an AFC East crown. They’ll get the Pats on Saturday night at home in a revenge spot after losing 14-10 to their dreaded rivals on home turf in early December.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+800)
Tom Brady and Buccaneers finished the season tied with the Packers for the best win-loss record in the NFL and finished the season on a three-game winning streak. The Bucs are looking to win back-to-back championships and will start their journey at home against as heavy favorites against the Philadelphia Eagles. Can Tom Terrific work his magic once more?
Tennessee Titans (+800)
Are the Titans being unfairly dismissed as legitimate contenders? They have a first-round bye after finishing the season with the AFC’s best record at 12-5. The issue may be that they were a little uneven down the stretch with losses to the Texans and Steelers sprinkled in among a solid victory over the Niners and an utterly dominant showing over the Dolphins. Tennessee won its last three and four of its last five, but the Titans’ fate will wait to be decided.
Just outside of the Top 5: Los Angeles Rams (+900), Dallas Cowboys (+1,200), Cincinnati Bengals (+2,000), New England Patriots (+2,000).
