Let's Get This Draft Over With
Williams, Daniels, Maye favored to go first in interminably hyped NFL Draft; Will McCarthy edge WR Harrison at No. 4?; NHL, NBA playoffs betting
The NFL Draft industrial complex is one of the most annoying and contrived forces in sports.
Mock drafts begin before the previous season ends. And they never stop. And then the bored speculators and agents begin the predictable process of building up and breaking down prospects to either prove their expertise or manipulate the market for their client.
By Mock 9.24, “draft experts” who aren’t ever held accountable for being wrong begin making trades. Because they’re bored and the whole thing is stupid.
We’re so close to this cycle being over, though. The NFL Draft begins on Thursday in Detroit.
Increasingly, you bet on it. So we’re into it now. So let’s forget all about the road to Motown and get you on the clock.
Here’s some of the options at DraftKings:
College Props (over/unders on picks from various conferences)
Position Props
Divisional Props
Mr. Irrelevant Position (‘Quarterback’ lowest odds at +300. The Brock Purdy Effect?. ‘Defensive end’ is next at +500, and that was the position last year. The Jets have the final choice for now.)
Top 5 and Top 10
Draft Day Trades
Draft Matchups
Betting trends at Fanatics:
Major Odds Shifts (since Apr. 17):
First Defensive Player Selected: Byron Murphy (+1400 to +175)
No. 9 pick: Byron Murphy (+1400 to +140, new favorite)
No. 8 pick: Laiatu Latu (+500 to +200, new favorite)
Chargers’ 1st Pick Exact Position: QB (+15000 to +750)
First RB Selected: Jonathon Brooks (+210 to -130)
Michael Penix Jr. Draft Position: Under 32.5 (+100 to -300)
Team to Select Blake Corum: Giants (+1500 to +350)
Team to Select Bo Nix: Rams (+2750 to +750)
Team to Select Xavier Worthy: Rams (+5000 to +850)
QB-Who?
Jayden Daniels is a -335 choice for second-overall
Daniels has vaulted up NFL teams’ draft boards since running away with the Heisman Trophy with a dominant senior season for LSU. With 40 touchdowns through the air and 10 more on the ground in 2023, Daniels showed off a ton of upside as both a passer and a runner. While his ceiling is undeniable, his running style, combined with his frame, make his durability a question. Will Washington invest heavily in a thin quarterback who loves to take off after injuries quickly derailed Robert Griffin III’s career following a promising rookie season?
One of the other knocks on Daniels is that he’s already 23 years old, while the 21-year-old Maye will not turn 22 until August.
At Fanatics, Daniels going second has produced 3.5 times more handle than any other NFL Draft prop bet since Apr. 17.
NFL Draft Odds
Here’s a saucy one from bet365:
Boban vs. Jontay Thankfully Didn’t Become a Thing
The National Basketball Association’s long and complicated relationship with legal sports betting had an informative few days last week.
Last Monday, East Coast social media woke to the story of a popular player intentionally failing to perform his best so he could produce a contrived outcome. This after telling future beneficiaries he would do so.
On Wednesday, the league announced that a previously nondescript player was banned for life for intentionally failing to perform his best to produce a contrived outcome. This after telling future beneficiaries he would do so.
This isn’t to say that Houston’s Boban Marjanovic tanking his second foul shot so the home LA Clippers fans could win a free chicken sandwich equates with Toronto’s Jontay Porter telling known gamblers he would pull himself out of games to secure the Under on prop bets on his stats.
Because it doesn’t.
Errin’ Rodgers Remains Banned
The NFL last week reinstated five players who were suspended for the entirety of the 2023 season after violating the league’s gambling policy.
They were:
Shaka Toney, Washington defensive end
Rashod Berry, free agent defensive end
Quintez Cephus, free agent wide receiver
C.J. Moore, free agent wide receiver
Demetrius Taylor, free agent defensive end
Notably not on this list is former Indianapolis defensive back Isaiah Rodgers, whose case is still under review, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Philadelphia currently holds Ridley’s rights.
Rodgers, suspended on June 29, 2023, could be undergoing extra scrutiny because, among his numerous bets with a legal sportsbook, he admitted to betting $1,000 on an over/under rushing yards prop involving former teammate Jonathan Taylor.
Rodgers claims that all his bets were made for friends and family back home in Florida, where sports betting wasn’t then available. This would make him the most misguided nice, you know, or suspicious, as Rodgers won’t divulge the names of those friends and family members.
Jacksonville wide receiver Calvin Ridley, with Atlanta in 2022, was banned for a calendar year after betting on NFL games. Because every story must have a Florida angle, Ridley was nabbed allegedly using a legal Hard Rock Bet account in the state while on a mental health sabbatical from the Falcons.
AP Photo; Brant James illustration
SaharaBets’ Future Seems Tenuous
Buried in the details of the Arizona Coyotes’ move to Utah is figuring out how Alex Meruelo will keep his sportsbook in business after his erstwhile NHL team heads to Salt Lake City.
SaharaBets, owned by Meruelo Gaming and the Coyotes, became the official sportsbook of the team in 2022, using it for market access. In Arizona, sportsbooks must partner with pro sports teams (BetMGM via the Cardinals, for example), venues (DraftKings via TPC Scottsdale), or Native American tribes (Betfred via Fort McDowell Yavapai) to gain sports betting licenses.
Meruelo still owns the rights to the Coyotes brand and hopes for a future expansion franchise. But SaharaBets, which is live only in Arizona, lost its dance partner. It’s hard to imagine that the Arizona Department of Gaming is considering a theoretical future Coyotes franchise as a placeholder for a team with actual skates, pucks, and sticks.
In an email to customers on Friday, SaharaBets said:
“Despite the significant development, we want to reassure you that SaharaBets Sportsbook remains fully committed to serving you without any operational disruptions. You can continue to rely on us as your preferred sports betting app, and we are dedicated to delivering the same level of service and excellence you've come to expect from us.”
Gaming Today asked SaharaBets president Andrew Patterson how the sportsbook would keep its market access without the Coyotes. We await his response.
Says the Arizona Department of Gaming:
“The Department is aware of the recent reports regarding the Arizona Coyotes, however, the Department has not received any notice from the Coyotes and/or their sports betting designee related to this matter.”
The question of whether SaharaBets will be missed remains. It’s been patronized about as well as Coyotes home games since 2022, generating 0.57% of Arizona’s combined handle since its debut, according to the Gaming Today sports betting revenue tracker.
SaharaBets’ handle of $7,638,565 ranks 16th of 28 reported in the state.
Pro Volleyball Federations Seeks Net Gains, Spike in Fans
(And you can bet on it now)
The Pro Volleyball Federation didn’t waste time making history. The first match in league history in January set a record for the largest crowd ever to watch professional women’s volleyball in the United States.
As the PVF navigates its first season, attendance has remained strong, the buzz around the sport has proved popular online, and the league has a national television deal. Many states have also added the league to their sports wagering catalogs. As many as 19 have done so thus far.
Last week, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission voted unanimously to add the PVF to its list of leagues allowed for Massachusetts sports betting. That request came from DraftKings, which provides odds for the first-year pro women’s league in several other states.
These states permit wagering on the Pro Volleyball Federation: Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming, Washington, and Ontario, Canada.
Odds …
… and enders
Remember when EPL teams agreed to phase out gambling sponsors? Aston Villa signed a two-year deal with Betano that will end when the moratorium begins
By BRANT JAMES, Gaming Today Senior Writer