Super Bowl 51 is almost six months away, but it is never too soon to start talking about who the favorites are to win it all in the NFL.
Week 1 of the NFL regular season will kick off on Thursday, as Thursday Night Football will feature a rematch of Super Bowl 50. As the days inch towards Opening Night, we take a look at the early odds for Super Bowl 51. There are some usual suspects at the top of the list, but the favorites will continue to get clearer as the year rolls on.
In 2015, the Denver Broncos opened up as the favorite to win Super Bowl 50, and they did just that. Their competitor in that game, the Carolina Panthers were in the middle of the pack, but they went on to dominate the NFC.
According to Bovada, the Green Bay Packers (+600) enter the 2016 regular season as the favorite to win the Super Bowl. The team has a healthy Jordy Nelson back, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers is the best in football. The Seattle Seahawks (+900) are the next NFC team in the rankings, but they are third behind the New England Patriots.
The Patriots (+625) will be without quarterback Tom Brady for the first four games, but that did not stop odds-makers from making them the top team in the AFC. They are absolutely loaded on both sides of the ball, and Brady will be back in plenty of time to lead them back into the playoffs.
The Panthers (+1100) are tied for fourth in the early odds list, as they are grouped in with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals. The biggest jump from last year has to be the Oakland Raiders (+2500), who are tied for 11th with the Indianapolis Colts. The Raiders and Jaguars were dead-last in the odds prior to the 2015 season.
For a full list of odds for Super Bowl 51, check out Bovada.
Next: 2016 NFL season: Record predictions for all 32 teams
Prior to Week 1 is a great time to place a bet on your favorite team, because you never know what can happen in the NFL. There is always a lot of parody in the league, and every year a team comes out of nowhere to make a run.