It’s amazing what a win will do for your odds … even if that victory was cemented via a 43-yard missed field goal that hit the upright and crossbar in the waning seconds of a Wild-Card game. (Hey, whatever it takes, right?)
The defending league champion Philadelphia Eagles entered the playoffs with the worst odds (+3500) to win Super Bowl LIII on February 3. But fresh off their 16-15 road victory over Chicago Bears on Sunday, the Eagles’ odds to repeat as Super Bowl champs have improved to +1900, according to FanDuel’s Sportsbook Futures bets.
Now, part of those odds improving have to do with the Eagles’ dramatic win and there being a smaller crop of possible champions, of course, but FanDuel placing Philly’s odds to win the Super Bowl at +1900 is significant for another reason. Those odds are actually better than the +2100 odds the daily fantasy sports powerhouse designated to the Dallas Cowboys.
The NFC East playoff teams will be hard-pressed to survive their next challenges, though, as the Eagles face the New Orleans Saints (+195) and the Cowboys visit the Los Angeles Rams (+410) — the squads given the best odds to win the Super Bowl. As of Monday, the Saints are eight-point favorites to defeat the Eagles on Sunday, while the Rams are 7.5-point favorites to do the same to the Cowboys the day before.
And that feeling seems to be shared outside of betting lines, as ESPN’s Football Power Indexis giving the Eagles a 22.6 percent chance of leaving New Orleans with an upset win to punch their ticket back to the NFC title game.
The Saints defense will look to get up, close and personal with Eagles quarterback Nick Foles, while the Eagles defense will have the unenviable task of trying to slow down Drew Brees and one of the best offenses in the NFL this year.
Would you take the Eagles at +8 for +330 to defeat the Saints?
