After trailing the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots throughout the entire offseason, the Green Bay Packers have entered July as favorites to win Super Bowl 50, with strong 6/1 odds in NFL futures betting at the online sportsbooks.
The Packers opened at 7/1 following the Pats’ 28-24 win over Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, but with QB Tom Brady’s impending four-game suspension rocking New England’s odds, sports bettors have turned to Green Bay, elevating them above the NFC rival Seahawks.
Seattle closely follows at 13/2, while Andrew Luck and Indianapolis Colts sit at 8/1, just ahead of the Patriots, who have rebounded to 9/1 after falling as far back as 12/1.
As expected, the Packers are once again heavy favorites to repeat as NFC North champs, with heavy -300 odds in NFL online betting.
The Pack’s 12 wins a year ago proved good enough to earn them a fourth straight division crown, with the difference being a crucial 30-20 win in Week 17 over the resurgent Detroit Lions, who finished the campaign with a respectable 11-5 record.
Despite their strong performance in 2014, in which they reached the 11-win mark for the first time since 1991, oddsmaker confidence in the Lions ahead of the upcoming season remains low.
Following the loss of DT Ndamukong Suh to the Miami Dolphins, and QB Matthew Stafford’s continued inability to garner respect around the league despite his Top 10 stats, the Lions trail the favorites with distant 40/1 odds in Super Bowl 50 betting, and are pegged well back of the Packers with +600 odds to claim their first division title since winning the old NFC Central in 1993.
The Lions must also reverse their brutal 6-24 record against the Pack since the start of the 2000 NFL season if they are to have any hope of competing in the NFC North.
Unlike Detroit, Minnesota Vikings fans remain hopeful about the upcoming season. With former MVP Adrian Peterson returning to the fold and QB Teddy Bridgewater entering his second NFL season, the Vikings will be looking to build on last year’s 7-9 record.
Minny is currently pegged at a promising 33/1 in Super Bowl futures betting, and join the Lions at +600 in NFC North betting.
However, if the Vikings are to make a move in the division, they will need to be better than their 1-5 record against NFC North rivals last season, and their 1-9-1 record against the Packers in their last 11 meetings, including a 24-10 loss on Wild Card Weekend in January 2013.
The Vikings will have plenty of time to prepare for Green Bay this fall, with the clubs first meeting in Minnesota in Week 11 before going head-to-head at Lambeau Field in the regular-season finale.
Things look a little less than rosy for the Chicago Bears, who are pegged as distant +1200 long-shots to win their first NFC North crown since 2010.
The Bears were a major disappointment in 2014, winning just five games after opening the season with strong +250 odds in NFL divisional betting.
Gone are coach Marc Trestman, WR Brandon Marshall and DE Ray McDonald and likely any chance of claiming an NFL Playoff berth.
The Packers routed Chicago in a pair of matchups last season and can pad their regular season record when the two clubs meet this year, first on Week 1 at Lambeau, followed by a matchup at Soldier Field on Thanksgiving night.