Updated March 17, 2026 | Based on latest sportsbook lines and free agency developments
The confetti had barely settled in Santa Clara after Super Bowl LX when oddsmakers across the country flipped the board to the 2026 season. The Seattle Seahawks took down the New England Patriots by the final score of 29–13 in Super Bowl LX, and immediately every team in the NFL betting odds Super Bowl 61 favorites 2026began preparing to emerge victorious in Super Bowl LXI. For NFL bettors, the calendar has already turned, and the question dominating futures markets right now is: who lifts the Lombardi Trophy in Los Angeles next February?
Super Bowl LXI will be played on February 14, 2027, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. That’s plenty of runway for odds to shift dramatically — free agency has already reshuffled the deck — but early positioning in the futures market can yield massive value. Here’s a deep dive into the current landscape.
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The Chalk: Seattle Seahawks
Super Bowl 61 odds are live with the Seattle Seahawks favored to win their second straight Lombardi Trophy. Sportsbooks expect Seattle to be contenders once again after Mike MacDonald’s defense led them to a dominant Super Bowl victory.
The case for Seattle repeating is built on a defensive foundation that was simply historic in the 2025 campaign. MacDonald’s menacing defense harried and harassed Drake Maye into mistakes, forcing two interceptions and a fumble. The Seahawks finished a sparkling 14-5 ATS, the best mark of any team in the league, while also becoming the fifth team in history to finish as the top team in defensive and total defense.
The Seahawks are also retaining several key players on their defense that ranked No. 1 in the NFL by allowing a mere 17.2 points per game in the regular season. The roster is largely intact, the culture is established, and Mike MacDonald is entering just his second season as head coach with a championship already in the trophy case.
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However, there are question marks. The biggest loss they will likely suffer in the offseason is Klint Kubiak, their offensive coordinator, leaving to become the new head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. Mike MacDonald is expected to promote from within to achieve some continuity for the offense, but there isn’t really a proven option waiting in the wings. Replacing a Super Bowl–winning offensive coordinator mid-dynasty is never seamless, and bettors would be wise to factor in that uncertainty.
The Hottest Team in Futures Markets Right Now: Los Angeles Rams (+800–+900)
According to the latest consensus odds, the Los Angeles Rams are among the early favorites to hoist the Lombardi Trophy to cap off the 2026 season at +900. Depending on the sportsbook, you can head to Betway for a better price on the Los Angeles Rams at +900, compared to +800 elsewhere.
The Rams’ outlook entering 2026 is arguably as strong as any team in football. Matt Stafford’s emphatic statement that he will return in 2026 makes the Rams instant Super Bowl 61 contenders. Another off-season of improving the level of talent along with an extra first-round draft pick puts LA in a strong spot to return to the Super Bowl. The reigning NFL MVP and dominant wideouts will power LA into playoff contention.
With Matthew Stafford returning, few real free agent concerns, and a solid amount of cap space, the Rams are in position to make another push for a Lombardi Trophy. They do need an answer at right tackle with Rob Havenstein retiring, but they already landed a big upgrade in the secondary via trade. They have the resources to fill any roster holes and get better at key positions.
It’s worth noting how close this rivalry came to deciding last year’s championship. Those two teams — the Seahawks and Rams — met in last season’s NFC Championship Game, with the Seahawks prevailing 31–27. A healthy Rams team figures to be in that conversation again in 2026, making this one of the most compelling early bets on the board.
The AFC Favorite: Baltimore Ravens
Perhaps the most dramatic storyline of the 2026 offseason has unfolded in Baltimore, and it has directly impacted the Ravens’ Super Bowl odds in real time.
After one of the most dramatic NFL free agency episodes in recent memory, the Baltimore Ravens have ultimately emerged with slightly improved odds to win the Super Bowl. The Ravens were 11-1 for the league’s title at the beginning of March, then jumped to +950 and eventually +900 after they agreed to a trade for superstar defensive end Maxx Crosby. However, when the news broke that they had backed out of the deal, Baltimore lengthened back to +950, but returned to +900 after signing All-Pro defensive end Trey Hendrickson.
The Crosby saga itself was one of the most chaotic chapters in recent NFL history. The biggest trade of the 2026 offseason is no more. The Baltimore Ravens “backed out” of the trade to acquire pass rusher Maxx Crosby, the Las Vegas Raiders announced Tuesday night, based on a medical reason. NFL The fallout was significant: fallout from the news could negatively impact how other clubs work with the Ravens, with one NFL general manager summarizing the feelings around the league as: “This is very much (expletive) on Baltimore’s part.”
But the Ravens quickly pivoted. The Ravens agreed to sign defensive end Trey Hendrickson on a four-year deal with a base of $112 million and a max of $120 million, based on sack incentives. Hendrickson, 31, was the most productive pass rusher available on this year’s free agent market. He posted 17.5 sacks in back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024, the latter of which led the league.
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The value of this move over the Crosby trade is clear in hindsight. Hendrickson is not as good a player as Crosby, but he also doesn’t require spending two first-round picks while commanding roughly the same financial compensation. That is a world of difference and makes this acquisition so much better. Baltimore can sign Hendrickson today, have him contribute to its title chances now, and have first-round picks this year and next year which can help in both the short and long term.
At DraftKings, Baltimore (+450) has overtaken the Buffalo Bills (+500) for favorite status to win the AFC and is the odds-on favorite to win the AFC. With Lamar Jackson under center and now a premier pass rusher in Trey Hendrickson, Baltimore’s window is wide open.
The Bills: Rebuilding Around Josh Allen (+1000–+1200)
Buffalo is sure to look different under head coach Joe Brady, and that starts on the personnel side. You can bet that after winning more games in a five-year span than any team in NFL history without making the Super Bowl, change is coming in northern New York. The Bills will undoubtedly get Josh Allen some more help in the off-season, with new wideouts and the spine of the defense on top of Buffalo’s priority list.
Buffalo narrowly fell to the Denver Broncos in the divisional round of the playoffs with a 33–30 overtime loss, but could go on a deeper postseason run next year with new head coach Joe Brady patrolling the sidelines. The Bills’ odds currently sit in the +1000–+1200 range depending on the book, reflecting genuine optimism about the fresh coaching regime but uncertainty about how quickly the pieces come together.
Green Bay Packers (+1200–+1400)
The Green Bay Packers remain a perennial futures market staple. The Buffalo Bills (+1000), Baltimore Ravens (+1200), and Green Bay Packers (+1200) round out the top-five favorites to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. Jordan Love continues to mature into one of the NFC’s most dangerous quarterbacks, and Green Bay’s young core gives them a high ceiling with multiple years of contention ahead.
Kansas City Chiefs: The Mahomes Question (+1400–+1500)
Kansas City finds itself in unfamiliar territory — listed as a mid-tier favorite rather than the overwhelming choice that dominated markets for half a decade. Mahomes will be in a race to be ready for the start of the season after his ACL injury, and he’ll come back to a roster that’s steadily declined because of some ugly drafts the last three years.
The Chiefs’ futures odds have softened dramatically because of this injury cloud. The Chiefs needed a quarterback, and Justin Fields is heading to Kansas City to serve as Patrick Mahomes’ backup and, possibly, the team’s Week 1 starter if Mahomes is not ready to return from his December ACL injury.
The addition of Fields as insurance is smart roster management, but it underscores just how real the Mahomes uncertainty is. A fully healthy Mahomes makes KC one of the top three teams in football. A Mahomes who’s only 75% in September? That changes the calculation entirely.
Philadelphia Eagles (+1400)
The Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles are co-sixth choice at +1400. The Eagles won Super Bowl LIX in convincing fashion and remain a deeply talented roster, though turnover at various positions and a difficult NFC means they’ll need to fight for a top seed again. Jalen Hurts is still one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in football, and the front office has shown remarkable skill at roster construction.
Detroit Lions and Sleepers Worth Monitoring
Behind the NFC West duo sits Buffalo, Baltimore, Green Bay and Detroit. Detroit endured a second straight injury-ravaged campaign last year. The result? Dropping from a 15-win team to a nine-win team. In hindsight, the dropoff makes sense: first-place schedule, loss of Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, countless injuries — 326 man games — and a high-variance defense.
The glass-is-half-full view of 2026 is that Detroit gets a last-place schedule in the stacked NFC North, and Drew Petzing takes over an offense that finished seventh in DVOA last year. For Petzing, he takes over an upgraded version of a team that proved a decent running threat. The Lions at +1500 or longer could be a value play if they stay healthy.
Another intriguing name: the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings were arguably just a quarterback away in 2025. Their defense was third in yards per play allowed (4.7) and fourth in points per drive allowed (1.69) while getting pressure at the highest rate in the league (44.5%). On Thursday, Kyler Murray signed with the Minnesota Vikings, joining J.J. McCarthy in the QB room. If Murray can resurrect his career and push McCarthy in training camp, Minnesota could be a genuine sleeper at an extended price.
The Longshots: High Risk, High Reward
On the other end of the spectrum, the Arizona Cardinals (+20000) and New York Jets (+17500) face the longest odds to win Super Bowl 61.
For bettors who love big-ticket upside plays, history offers both encouragement and warning. The eventual Super Bowl winner has come from the top-four favorites in preseason odds in a whopping eight of the last 10 seasons. The 2017 Philadelphia Eagles won the Lombardi Trophy with the 13th-shortest odds (+4000). The 2025 Seattle Seahawks were even more unlikely champions with the 19th-shortest odds (+6000).
The Jacksonville Jaguars represent an interesting middle-ground play. Entering Liam Cohen’s first season as head coach, the Jaguars were not expected to do much, given +8000 odds to win the 2026 Super Bowl at opening. But after a solid 13-4 season that saw them win the AFC South, Jacksonville is among the outside contenders at opening this season. The Jags are given +2100 odds to win Super Bowl 61.
Key Betting Strategy Considerations
When to Bet Futures
If you’re betting on Super Bowl LXI favorites, you should place bets closer to the start of the season. That way, you’ll keep funds in your account for an extra couple of months or possibly use a bonus bet that does not tie up cash for months. If making a bet early, identify teams that could have volatility in their odds with a single trade or signing, take a chance on those teams, and gain closing line value.
The Baltimore Ravens are a perfect case study in that logic. Their odds swung from +1100 to +900 to +950 and back to +900 within a single week of free agency news. Bettors who identified them as an undervalued AFC contender before the Hendrickson signing at +1100 picked up significant closing line value instantly.
Super Bowl Venue Trends
Trends worth noting: 7 of the last 12 Super Bowls have been won by an AFC team. Teams wearing white jerseys are 16-6 SU in the last 22 Super Bowls. The team that plays closest to the site of the Super Bowl has won eight of the last 10 games.
With SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles hosting Super Bowl LXI, the Rams — who play their home games there — carry an interesting proximity edge that could gradually inflate their futures odds as the season approaches.
The Chiefs’ Legacy Factor
Kansas City hasn’t been above 10-1 odds since the Chiefs were 30-1 in Patrick Mahomes’ first season as a starter in 2018. The Chiefs finished 12-0 in one-score games in 2024 (postseason included) before slipping to a miserable 1-9 mark in one-score games this past season A regression to the mean in close games, combined with a healthy Mahomes, could make the Chiefs a strong mid-season buy if their early results are strong and their odds drift further from the top of the board.
Current Super Bowl 61 Odds Snapshot (March 2026)
Here’s a quick-reference summary of where the major books have the top contenders right now:
| Team | Approx. Odds | Conference |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle Seahawks | +800 | NFC |
| Los Angeles Rams | +800–+900 | NFC |
| Baltimore Ravens | +900 | AFC |
| Buffalo Bills | +1000–+1200 | AFC |
| Green Bay Packers | +1200–+1400 | NFC |
| Kansas City Chiefs | +1400–+1500 | AFC |
| Philadelphia Eagles | +1400 | NFC |
| Detroit Lions | +1500 | NFC |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | +2100 | AFC |
| New York Giants | +6600 | NFC |
| Arizona Cardinals | +20000 | NFC |
Final Thoughts
The 2026 NFL season is shaping up to be one of the most wide-open competitions in years. The circumstances are a little different this offseason since there are no clear favorites for the Lombardi Trophy heading into the 2026 season. That’s actually great news for futures bettors — it means value is distributed throughout the board rather than concentrated in one dynasty team at impossibly short odds.
The Seahawks have the pedigree, defense, and momentum of a champion. The Rams have an MVP quarterback, a hungry head coach, and home-field proximity for the Super Bowl. The Ravens have Lamar Jackson, a rebuilt pass rush, and something to prove after a chaotic offseason. And lurking in the shadows are Mahomes-if-healthy, a rejuvenated Detroit offense, and a Vikings team with suddenly upgraded quarterback depth.
The futures board will evolve dramatically through April’s NFL Draft, summer training camps, and Week 1 performances. But the seeds of Super Bowl LXI contention are being planted right now, and early positioning — particularly on teams whose odds could dramatically shorten with a single free agency move or draft night addition — remains the sharpest play available to NFL bettors in March 2026.
Gambling involves risk. Please bet responsibly. Odds are subject to change and vary by sportsbook.
