It was a Super Bowl to remember, or perhaps one to forget, this past Sunday night. It all depends on what side of the aisle you were on. For some, it was an extremely profitable day. Choosing the underdog Tampa Bay Buccaneers to upset the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs would have gotten you a nice payday, and if you paired them with the under, you were swimming in dough.
Tom Brady is a Super Bowl Champion for what seems like the billionth time. The now seven-time champion and his Bucs defeated Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs 31-9 to win Super Bowl LV in dominating fashion. The Bucs victory paired with that under of 56 was the best-case scenario for most sportsbooks.
PointsBet reported prior to the kickoff that it had an insane 90% of its point-spread handle on Chiefs -3, and 66% of the money on the over. This goes to show you that when people bet against Brady, it doesn’t usually end well for them. In fact, if you put a $100 Super Bowl future on Tom Brady every single season since he entered the league, you would be profiting over $9,500. Despite that, everyone was on the Chiefs. Obviously, the banged-up Chiefs OL had more of a role in the game than bettors anticipated.
One Bettor Wins BIG On Tampa Futures
The Bucs were one of the biggest preseason longshots ever to win a Super Bowl at 65-1 when they opened last February. A bettor named Mark DeRosa believed so strongly that the Bucs would land Brady, he bet huge on them before they even announced his signing. DeRosa and his friend Zack White put down $20,000 on the Bucs at 65-1 to win the Super Bowl and 35-1 to win the NFC.
DeRosa posted this picture last night after he took home almost $400,000 on those big gambles.
Current mood pic.twitter.com/x9FCMtaDpz
— Mark DeRosa (@edteach23) February 8, 2021
Mattress Mack’s Millions
If you’ve never heard of Mattress Mack, you are about to find out real quickly why people know him. Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale is a Houston based furniture store owner who is well known for making massive bets. He had placed a $3.46 million wager on Bucs +3.5 in Super Bowl LV using DraftKings Sportsbook in Colorado.
After Tampa Bay took home the Lombardi Trophy the other night, the big-time gambler will take home a hefty $2.72 million profit. McIngvale has used his gambling in the past to mitigate sales promotions at his business that help his customers save money. This year, customers of McIngvale who spent $3,000 or more on certain mattresses and had them delivered before the game will not receive a bill. So they can thank Brady for the free furniture.
The Case Of The Hidden Gatorade
This sounds like something out of Scooby-Doo but many were wondering and sweating what color the Gatorade was that would be poured on the winning coach’s head. Yes, we are that complex now in Super Bowl betting. This has actually become one of the more fun props to bet on over the last several years. Panic started to set in for all of us who had bet on a color when CBS never showed a Gatorade shower being poured on Tampa Bay head coach Bruce Arians. Turns out, CBS turned their cameras away from it for some reason, which left a ton of us wondering if there even was a shower.
Luckily for us all, Twitter exists. A video went viral shortly after the game ended from a fan in the stands that showed the Gatorade shower color to be blue. Later, the Bucs official Twitter account confirmed it with this photo celebrating the victory.
One team. One cause.
Mission complete. 💍🏆 pic.twitter.com/fYG7TTr16p
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) February 8, 2021
The odds for the color blue to be the one used in the shower were +700 at DraftKings Sportsbook when the lines closed, making it the biggest longshot. The most notable bet was a $100 bet on blue to win $800. I won $80 on a small $10 bet on my favorite color.
Tails Never Fails, Unless It Does
I was definitely wrong here when I picked tails because I was told it never fails. I blame Susie, what a poor flip of the coin. Or maybe it’s me, who knows. The coin toss has become just as popular as the Gatorade prop bet in recent years. It’s a very straightforward bet that anyone can understand, which makes it so popular with every bettor. The result was obviously heads, and the most notable win was a $6,666 wager to win $6,349 on heads (-105).
Props Helped The Books Win Big
The public loves betting the over on Super Bowl props every year, and this year was no different. Everyone and their brother was on Tyreek Hill overs after his Week 12 performance that saw him have almost 200 yards receiving in the first quarter against the Bucs in Tampa. They were also on Travis Kelce Overs and Brady over on rushing yards at only .5. Unfortunately for all of them, the game was lower-scoring overall, and the books profited big from it.
One bet really killed the books on Sunday though, as Rob Gronkowski’s props hit in almost every which way. Gronkowski first TD was a big winner for bettors, with FanDuel paying out over $3.1 million and another $650k when Gronk scored his second TD of the game.
Brady to win Super Bowl MVP was also a very popular bet among the gambling community which paid out large. He had more tickets on his winning Super Bowl MVP than anyone else. Devin White MVP bettors were pretty miffed, as he played outstanding for the Bucs defensively, and they thought he was deserving of the award at +5000.
Looking Forward
It seems as though despite their blowout loss at the hands of the Bucs, the Chiefs have opened up once again as favorites to win the Super Bowl in 2022. Historically speaking, the runner-up in a Super Bowl does not return to the game the next season, but the Chiefs have a secret weapon called Mahomes. With all the quarterback instability throughout the NFL, it would be no surprise to see a team with an established superstar return to the big game. Could we get a rematch of this year’s big game in Super Bowl LVI?
This wraps up the 2020 NFL sports gambling season. I hope we could inform you and make you a better bettor this season, and we can’t wait for the next one to start. Of course, we will have plenty of articles on off-season moves and NFL Draft bets to come, but this does it for the games.
Stay safe out there!
