As the coronavirus outbreak wreaks havoc on the sports world, and life in general, bettors are left sitting around looking for new ways to get their fix in this new way of life. Fear not, my friends – the NFL Draft will be taking place beginning April 23.
FanDuel Sportsbook anticipates the 2020 NFL Draft to be the most bet-on sporting event of the season. Mostly, in part, to there being almost nothing else on the board to wager on. The company has prepared very well for the event, putting odds on nearly every outcome.
Joe Burrow, the reigning Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from LSU, is all but a lock to be heading to the Cincinnati Bengals with their No. 1 overall pick. FanDuel has -7000 odds on Burrow to be the top overall pick, while Chase Young, the massive edge rusher from Ohio State, is in good standing to go to the Washington Redskins with the No. 2 overall pick.
Keep in mind, FanDuel’s odds are for the players to go in that draft position – not to the team.
Once we get to the No. 3 overall pick, things start to get a bit dicey. Tua Tagovailoa, the heralded QB from Alabama, is the real wild card in this draft.
Currently, the Detroit Lions hold that No. 3 pick, but they could very well be dealing with the Miami Dolphins, who certainly want Tua to be their QB of the future.
The Lions have plenty of interest in Jeff Okudah, the talented cornerback from Ohio State. If Detroit feels like Okudah is the guy, it can stand firm with him at 3 – where the cornerback has +130 odds to land.
Tua has the second-best odds, at +220, to land in the 3 spot. Making matters even more difficult is the fact that the New York Giants would be tempted to take Okudah with the No. 4 overall pick if he’s there.
Lots Of Bets Available
As we mentioned, FanDuel basically has odds for every nook and cranny of this draft. In addition to the individual selections, it has odds on the order of the first three selections.
Leading the way is the Burrow-Young-Okudah combo at +135, while the Burrow-Young-Tagovailoa comes in second at +230.
For those of you hoping that Oregon QB Justin Herbert sneaks his way into the top five, you might not want to put your hard-earned money on it. While the +125 odds for Herbert to get drafted in the first five picks is hardly worth it, recent rumors have him slipping – possibly even to the edge of the first 10 picks.
Herbert does, however, still have -3500 odds to be drafted in the first 10 picks, and that’s definitely not worth putting your money on.
While the first few picks will be spotlighted, there are plenty of other ways to make money in this draft as well. In the New York area, FanDuel has specials on the hometown Giants and Jets.
According to the odds, the Giants are most likely to select an offensive lineman, possibly Tristan Wirfs from Iowa, with their first pick. The -170 odds are atop the list, compared to the +185 odds that they will select a linebacker – most likely Isaiah Simmons of Clemson.
The Jets’ odds are a bit of a tangled mess. Currently, the most likely position they draft first is offensive lineman at +100, with wide receiver coming in second at +120. However, when you look at which players the Jets would draft first, you see WRs Jerry Jeudy (+280) from Alabama and CeeDee Lamb (+350) from Oklahoma at the top. Offensive linemen Andrew Thomas (+450) from Georgia, Mekhi Becton (+600) from Louisville, and Jedrick Willis Jr. (+780) are all behind.
One thing is certain; we’ll be tuning into the NFL Draft next Thursday. After all, what the hell else are we doing?
