With the coronavirus pandemic continuing to keep sports leagues and events canceled or suspended, there hasn’t been much to place bets on.
Enter the 2020 NFL draft, which starts on Thursday night with the first round.
Even though it has a chance to be a huge disaster with technical glitches and problems, college players will eventually be drafted by teams and there’s a possibility you could win money in the process if you make some bold predictions.
So let’s go over some of the best bets we see on the board ahead of Thursday night.
(All bets courtesy of BetMGM.)
1. Third overall pick (Tua Tagovailoa +400, Justin Herbert +400)
It could be Jeffrey Okudah (who’s at +125). But remember: best bets can also be about value, and I love the idea of throwing a few bucks on the two quarterbacks that teams could trade up with the Lions to nab. At +400, there’s so much value there.
2. Third quarterback drafted (Jordan Love +600)
Joe Burrow will go first. Either Tagovailoa or Herbert might go second, and the other of that pair MIGHT go third. But what if there’s a team out there that’s fallen in love with the Utah State product? Then a bet on +600 might turn out to be a really good one.
3. Total wide receivers in first round (Under 5.5 +145)
I know this is perhaps an all-time class of wideouts. But let’s count: Jerry Jeudy, CeeDee Lamb, Justin Jefferson and Henry Ruggs all seem like locks. What about Tee Higgins, Michael Pittman Jr. and Denzel Mims? Are there REALLY six teams who are going to take wide receivers in the first, or will some teams see the value in waiting until the second? You can see where I land with this one.
4. Total running backs drafted in he first round (Under 0.5 +145)
Seems like most mocks have D’Andre Swift out of Georgia as the only possible first-rounder, but I’ll take the odds on any RB going outside the opening round.
5. First running back drafted (Jonathan Taylor +200)
Our Steven Ruiz thinks he’s the top RB on the board, and I find that listening to him is usually the smartest move. Plus, decent odds!
6. More 1st round picks — head-to-head Alabama/LSU (LSU +250)
The Crimson Tide could see Tua Tagovailoa, Jerry Jeudy, Jedrick Wills Jr., Xavier McKinney and Henry Ruggs go in the first round. The Tigers have Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson, K’Lavon Chaisson and Patrick Queen, but maybe Grant Delpit and Kristian Fulton jump in. So I’ll go for the odds on the Tigers.
7. Tua Tagovailoa draft position (Over 5.5 +135)
Are teams nervous about his injury history? Do other teams love Justin Herbert more? If so, here’s a bet worth putting money on.
8. In which round will Jalen Hurts be drafted? (Round 3 +150, Rounds 4-7 +1400)
The favorite is in the second round, and that makes some sense but man, those Round 4-7 odds. If you want a safer bet, the third round seems decent.
9. Which team will draft Tua Tagovailoa? (Las Vegas Raiders +1200)
LET’S GET NUTS! I just want to see if Jon Gruden goes for a QB, and you have to love those odds.
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