Reed Hoffmann/Associated Press

Super Bowl 2021: Opening Odds for Chiefs vs. Buccaneers, Top Prop Bets, History

Jake Rill

The Super Bowl LV matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers has provided a bunch of interesting storylines heading into the final game of the 2020 NFL season. And with the contest not taking place until Feb. 7, there will be plenty of time to break things down.

Can the Chiefs win the Super Bowl title for the second straight year? There hasn't been a team to do so since the New England Patriots ended both the 2003 and 2004 seasons by capturing the championship. But with Super Bowl LIV MVP Patrick Mahomes playing at a high level, Kansas City is again on a roll this postseason.

Will Tom Brady win his seventh career Super Bowl title? The 43-year-old quarterback already owns the record for most championships as a player, but each of his first six came during his first 20 NFL seasons with the Patriots. Now, he'll be looking to lead the Buccaneers to their first Super Bowl title since the 2002 season.

And Brady will be doing that in front of the Bucs' home crowd (albeit at a limited capacity), as they'll become the first team to play the Super Bowl at their own stadium, with this year's game taking place at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

With Super Bowl LV a little less than two weeks away, here's a look at important information for the matchup, including the opening odds and some early prop bets with historical context.

     

Super Bowl LV Information

Date: Sunday, Feb. 7

Start Time: 6:30 p.m. ET

TV: CBS

      

Opening Odds

Spread: Kansas City (-3)

Over/Under: 56.5 points

Moneyline: Kansas City -162 (bet $162 to win $100); Tampa Bay +143 (bet $100 to win $143)

Via DraftKings Sportsbook

      

Early Prop Bets, History

All odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

The Super Bowl always features a ton of prop bets, and not only for football-related stats and honors. There will be bets to make regarding the national anthem, the halftime show, commercials and more, and bets will continue to pop up over the next two weeks.

One of the early props that bettors can wager on is for the Super Bowl MVP Award. And it shouldn't be a surprise who the two favorites are: Mahomes and Brady.

Mahomes is the early betting favorite at +110, and if the Chiefs quarterback brings home the honor, he'd make history by becoming only the third player to win the award in consecutive years. Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr was the MVP of both Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, while Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw won the award in both Super Bowl XIII and Super Bowl XIV.

If the Chiefs end up winning Super Bowl LV, there's a strong chance that Mahomes could win MVP. The 25-year-old left their divisional-round win over the Cleveland Browns with an injury and spent last week in the NFL's concussion protocol. But he returned by passing for 325 yards and three touchdowns in their AFC Championship Game victory over the Buffalo Bills.

Not only is Brady a six-time Super Bowl champion, but he's won the game's MVP award four times, which is more than any other player in NFL history. (Joe Montana ranks second with three Super Bowl MVP honors.) Brady's odds of winning it a fifth time are at +250.

Through Tampa Bay's first three playoff games, Brady has passed for 860 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions (all of the latter came against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game).

Kansas City's Travis Kelce is tied for the third-best odds to win Super Bowl MVP (at +900), and he could make history by becoming the first tight end to win the award. Kelce had a huge showing in the AFC Championship Game, hauling in 13 passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns.

Kelce and Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill have the best odds to score a touchdown in Super Bowl LV at -175. Both players made their Super Bowl debuts last year, and while Kelce got into the end zone against the San Francisco 49ers, Hill didn't score a touchdown in that game.

The Buccaneers players with the best odds to score a touchdown in Super Bowl LV are running back Leonard Fournette (+110) and wide receivers Mike Evans (+115) and Chris Godwin (+140), each of whom will be making his Super Bowl debut. Fournette and Evans each got into the end zone in the NFC Championship Game.

In the past, teams that score first in the Super Bowl are 36-18. Bets can be made for Super Bowl LV on the Chiefs scoring first and winning (+155) or the Buccaneers doing so (+285). Kansas City didn't score first in Super Bowl LIV, but it still went on to win the championship.

     


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