If you think the Denver Broncos are going to beat the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50, you’re in the minority when it comes to those betting on the big game.
This year’s end-of-the-year NFL extravaganza is generating extremely lopsided action for the Panthers.
Ben Fawkes of ESPN is on this story and reached out to Nick Bogdanovich, director of trading for William Hill US, who responded via email: “I can’t remember a more one-sided betting Super Bowl.”
Indeed, the action is heavily tilted in favor of Carolina, which started out as 3.5-4.5-point favorites but could jump as high as six points, per Bogdanovich and John Avello, the race and sports operations director at Wynn and Encore.
“Over 80 percent of the early money and tickets are on the Panthers -4.5, and we are still writing tickets at that ratio,” Avello said in an email to ESPN.
“The public is clearly enamored with the supposed mismatch of Cam Newtonover Peyton Manning,” Bogdanovich said. “[Nearly] every ticket is on Carolina and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing up.”
While it’s understandable that so many people would be impressed by what Carolina has done, it’s not like the Broncos don’t enter the contest with a shot at winning this game.
Denver’s defense has been stellar all year long, entering the playoffs with the No. 1 defense in the NFL and then shutting down two of the league’s top offenses in the playoffs. Granted, Peyton Manning isn’t the same guy he was even two years ago, but this could be his last rodeo and he’s going to lay it all on the line.
As good as the Panthers are in all three phases of the game there are other factors at work here that cannot be quantified on paper. With that in mind, if you’re going to bet on the Broncos, perhaps wait a little longer for that betting line to move even more in your favor.