The Super Bowl is the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet. As a result it also takes in billions of dollars at the betting window. There are reasons for that. The game sits alone on the schedule and with weeks of buildup there is an assortment of proposition bets available from beginning to end. You can wager the over/under on the duration of the national anthem to what color liquid the winning coach gets doused with. There are also the standard spread and total wagers. One popular prop bet is on the game’s MVP, and considering quarterbacks have won the award 30 times in the previous 54 Super Bowls it’s not surprising to see Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes and Tampa Bay’s Tom Brady at the top of the odds board at BookMaker.eu with a significant drop after that.
Super Bowl 55 – Tampa Bay Bucs vs Kansas City Chiefs
Date and Time: Sunday, February 7, 2021, 6:30 p.m. ET
Location: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Opening NFL Odds: Kansas City -3, O/U 56
TV Coverage: CBS
Super Bowl LV MVP Odds
Patrick Mahomes -110
Tom Brady +200
Travis Kelce +1000
Tyreek Hill +1000
Chris Godwin +2800
Mike Evans +2800
Leonard Fournette +3300
Tyrann Mathieu +4000
Antonio Brown +5000
Clyde Edwards-Helaire +5000
Darrel Williams +5000
Mecole Hardman +5000
Ronald Jones II +5000
Shaquil Barrett +5000
Devin White +6600
Jason Pierre-Paul +6600
Rob Gronkowski +6600
Byron Pringle +10000
Cameron Brate +10000
Chris Jones +10000
Daniel Sorenson +10000
Demarcus Robinson +10000
Frank Clark +10000
Jordan Whitehead +10000
Juan Thornhill +10000
Lavonte David +10000
Scotty Miller +10000
Sean Murphy-Bunting +10000
Tyler Johnson +10000
Vita Vea +10000
Willie Gay +10000
Harrison Butker +15000
Le’Veon Bell +15000
Ryan Succop +15000
(Source: BookMaker.eu)
It’s common to see the starting quarterback with the favored team have the shortest odds. And guess what? There’s Mahomes at negative odds to win a second straight MVP and become yet another quarterback to win the honor. Mahomes had another sparkling season throwing for 4,740 yards and 38 touchdowns for the league’s top-ranked offense. The Chiefs averaged 415.8 yards per game during the regular season and ranked sixth scoring just a shade under 30 points a game. Mahomes was at his best in the AFC Championship throwing for 325 yards and three touchdowns a week after sustaining a concussion.
As good as Mahomes has been he has a long way to go to catch up with his counterpart. At age 43 Brady is playing in his 10th Super Bowl and has claimed MVP honors a record four times. However, Brady struggled in the NFC Championship throwing three interceptions and he’s completed only 55 percent of his throws in the postseason. Of course that means squat heading into the Super Bowl where Brady has been the master.
The teams are prolific offensively finishing among the top six in the NFL in scoring during the regular season. We do need to mention the defense, though. Both teams came up big on that side of the ball on Championship Sunday holding the highest scoring teams in the league below their season averages. There’s a reason why only 10 defenders have won the MVP, though, that’s because they don’t compile enough quantitative stats. Denver’s Von Miller in Super Bowl 50 was the last defensive player to win the award when he collected 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and six tackles. With two teams that can move the football and score, it’s unlikely we see a defender walk away with the hardware.
The best value bets are pass catchers. The last four offensive MVPs that weren’t QBs were wide receivers with Julian Edelman in Super Bowl LIII the most recent. And both clubs are stacked at the position. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin carry plenty of value for Tampa while Tyreek Hill is solid bet for KC. The only problem with the Chiefs is that Mahomes is so good he’s likely to put up big enough numbers throwing the football with few mistakes, which would put him in line for another award.
Outside of Hill there are a few other intriguing options on the Chiefs. Tight end Travis Kelce had another monster year with 105 catches and 1,416 yards with 11 touchdowns. He’s a favorite target of Mahomes inside the red zone and will have enough opportunities. Also, at +5000 on the current line is Mecole Hardman, who can do a bit of everything. He’s used in the running game and returns kicks, which allows him to amass numbers without Mahomes taking credit for them.
In order to cash a winning ticket on this bet you first have to get the winning team right. Only once in Super Bowl history has the MVP come from the losing team, and that was way back in 1971 when Dallas linebacker Chuck Howley earned the honor with a pair of interceptions and a fumble recovery. There’s never been a kicker named MVP and two good ones go at it in Tampa. But unless Harrison Butker or Ryan Succop does something extraordinary it’s not going to happen. New England’s Adam Vinatieri kicked a game-winning 48-yard field goal to beat St. Louis in Super Bowl XXXVI and wasn’t named MVP.
