Futures: Best Bets For Super Bowl XLII
By Adam Kiefaber
THE TOP DOGS
New England Patriots- current odds @ 5/1
Currently, New England is the favorite to win the Super Bowl. If you want to bet the Pats to win it all, I would do it immediately. The 5/1 odds will likely drop to 3/1 or 9/2 by the time the season starts. The Pats are the favorites due to their successful offseason. New England signed two of the biggest free agents in 
WR Randy Moss (Oakland) and LB Adalius Thomas (Baltimore). Also, worth noting are the additions of WRs Donte Stallworth (Philadelphia), Kelley Washington (Cincinnati) and Wes Walker (Miami). Corey Dillon will be replaced by free agent Sammy Morris (Miami), who will rotate will Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk. QB Tom Brady threw for 3,529 yards last year without a good receiving core.
Indianapolis Colts- current odds @ 11/2
It is never a bad idea to bet on the past season’s super bowl champions. Since 1989, the Super Bowl champ has repeated four times (San Francisco ‘89, ‘90 - Dallas ‘93, ‘94 - Denver ‘98, ‘99 - New England ‘04, ‘05). Also, it is hard to bet against Peyton Manning. The Colts did lose some talent this offseason in S Mike Doss (to MIN), CB Nick Harper (to TEN), RB Dominic Rhodes (to OAK) and WR Brandon Stokley. However, the Colts had a great draft getting WR Anthony Gonzalez to replace Stokley. Also, third rounders CB Daymeion Hughes and DT Quinn Pitcock should receive playing time right away.
THE GOOD DEALS
Cincinnati Bengals- current odds @ 15/1
The Bengals barely missed out on the playoffs last season. Cincinnati is a very young team with an easier schedule in ‘07. The Bengals did lose a bunch of players this offseason, such as DT Sam Adams (to DEN), CB Tory James (to NE), S Kevin Kaesviharn (to NO), Eric Steinbach (to CLE) and Brian Simmons (to NO). Besides Simmons and Steinbach, all of the players that the Bengals lost will be easy to replace. They added Ed Hartwell (Atlanta) to replace Simmons and Michael Myers (Denver) to replace Adams. Personally, I think the defense will be better this season and as long as Carson Palmer is healthy this team has a shot.
Seattle Seahawks- current odds @ 15/1
Personally I don’t like to pick NFC teams (that is the main reason I left the Chicago Bears off my top dogs list- the other is Rex Grossman), but @ 15/1 the Seahawks seem like a pretty good deal. In the last four seasons, Seattle has held a record 41-23, made the playoffs each year and went to the Super Bowl in the ‘05 season. They have a great coach in Mike Homgren, a solid QB in Matt Hasselback and while they did lose leading WR in Darrell Jackson (to SF), they still have a Super Bowl MVP in WR Deion Branch.
THE GREAT DEALS
Pittsburgh Steelers current odds @ 25/1
Personally, I think the Steelers will struggle with the departures of HC Bill Cowher and OC Ken Whisenhunt (HC @ Arizona). However, new HC Mike Tomlin kept the whole staff on board in Pittsburgh, all of which were part of the Steelers Super Bowl run in the ‘05 season. The Steelers didn’t help themselves much this offseason, not adding a single solid player (maybe RB Kevin Barlow) and losing one playmaker in LB Joey Porter. The Steelers went a disappointing 8-8 last year, but the last time the Steelers were disappointing (6-10 in ‘03) they turned it around the following season (15-1 in ‘04).
Philadelphia Eagles current odds @ 30/1 
From ‘01 through ‘04 the Eagles made it all the way to the NFC Championship. In ‘04 they made it to the Super Bowl, losing 24-21 to New England. The Eagles did lose QB Jeff Garcia (to TB), but if QB Donovan McNabb can stay healthy that shouldn’t matter. Also they lost WR Donte Stallworth (to NE), however Philly signed Kevin Curtis (St. Louis) to replace him. The Eagles signed one of the better free agents this offseason in LB Takeo Spikes. I expect the Eagles’ odds to drop as the season approaches.
Carolina Panthers current odds @ 30/1
Every year a well-known publication will take the Carolina Panthers as their pick to win the Super Bowl. This year, you might not see that, but @ 30/1 they could be the greatest deal. Carolina lost a heart-breaker 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII to New England. Also, Carolina seems to be a contender every other year. In ‘02, Carolina went 7-9. The following season they went 11-5 and made it to the Super Bowl. In ‘04, Carolina went 7-9 again. Then in ‘05, they went 11-5 and made it all the way to the NFC Championship. Last year, they were 8-8. Does that mean a 12-4 record? Maybe, the NFC South is expected to be worse this season.
ROLL THE DICE- LONGSHOTS THAT ACTUALLY HAVE A SHOT
Tennessee Titans current odds @ 70/1 
The Titans odds opened up this offseason at 45/1 and should be back down around that mark once the season starts. I thought I had to miss something on why the odds would go up so much, but it’s because of the suspension to CB Pacman Jones and loss of RB Travis Henry. Last year, the Titans began the season 0-5 and didn’t start rookie QB Vince Young right away. However, Young led his team to an 8-3 record after the poor start, including a winning streak of six games in weeks 11 through 16, which almost qualified the Titans for the playoffs.
Kansas City Chiefs current odds @ 75/1
Personally, I don’t think getting rid of QB Trent Green was the right move. However, the current odds of 75/1 is too good not to touch. Sure, Green is a great QB, but Damon Huard filled in and had a TD-to-interception ratio of 11 to 1. Also, the Chiefs have the best RB in the league in Larry Johnson and have been successful in recent history (39-25 in the last four seasons). There is a big question mark on the offensive line, but the team did make some moves to upgrade their defense. The Chiefs odds opened this offseason at 40/1 and should approach that number once the season starts.
(odds taken from http://www.vegasinsider.com)
