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The New Orleans Saints have called the shots in the NFC South for three years in a row, winning the division crown each time and condemning the also-rans like the Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Carolina Panthers to the cellar.
Tampa Bay has arguably done more than any other team to try and catch up to New Orleans, signing legendary New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and working quickly in the 2020 NFL Draft to surround him with better protection (in Iowa left tackle Tristan Wirfs) and playmakers on defense (with Minnesota safety Antoine Winfield Jr.). The Buccaneers also coaxed Rob Gronkowski out of retirement to catch passes from Brady again.
And all of those moves have inspired some confidence among sportsbettors. Per the latest odds from BetMGM, the Saints and Buccaneers have the same chances of winning Super Bowl LV (at +1100), trailing the teams that competed in last year’s title game and a contender that hopes to fill the void Brady left in the AFC hierarchy. The Kansas City Chiefs (+650), the Baltiomre Ravens (+750), and the San Francisco 49ers (+900) are each slotted in ahead of the top-two NFC South squads, with the Philadelphia Eagles (+1800) rounding out the top tier.
While New Orleans and Tampa Bay are perceived as equals in the Super Bowl race, the Saints do have an edge in odds for winning the division. Ahead of the rest at 100-even, the Saints narrowly lead the Buccaneers (+120) in pursuit of a first-place finish while also facing the longest chances of total failure. If there’s a sprint to the bottom, the Buccaneers (+3000) have a better shot at futility than the Saints (+3500), which is kind of reassuring.
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