Millions of people will place a bet on the Super Bowl before kickoff next Sunday. There are countless ways to wager money on the Big Game and its outcome, in addition to the action off of the field.
One unusual bet is starting to become increasingly popular. It will require sportsbooks to pay out big money if it hits.
Thomas Gable serves as the sportsbook director at Borgata Hotel & Casino in New Jersey. He hopes that Sam Darnold will not be named the Most Valuable Player at Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
That specific bet is currently Borgata’s biggest liability at 300-1 odds.
People are betting that Brock Purdy will either get injured or play poorly enough to be benched in favor of his backup. Darnold would then need to enter the game and lead the 49ers to victory behind a big day through the air.
Only one player has ever been named MVP from the losing team, so San Francisco likely needs to win.
Now, it is still early. There is still a lot of money that will come in over the next seven days. The biggest liability could change between whenever you’re reading this article and kickoff.
However, as things currently stand, Borgata would have to pay out the biggest sum of money if Darnold manages to be named MVP. And there has been a lot of chatte about the backup quarterback being a sneaky Super Bowl bet to cash-in big if things don’t go Purdy’s way.
Darnold has the ability to win the Super Bowl if called upon. It won’t be an easy task if it happens, because the Chiefs are still the Chiefs, but that would require him to get in the game.
That part of the equation is where the biggest risk lies!