The Super Bowl is in the books, and the Chiefs and the under made it a good day on bets against the NFL odds for most of the sportsbooks. But the massive number of prop bets is what makes the Super Bowl the biggest single-day betting event in sports.
The Kansas City Chiefs rallied to beat the 49ers 31-20 in Miami on Sunday night, with Kansas City closing as a 1.5-point favorite and the over-under for total points settling at 52.5 at most shops by kickoff.
There wasn't much unusual about the game, with no overtime, two-point conversions or safeties. And nothing outrageous happened during the pregame or halftime performances. There were no wardrobe malfunctions (No, -2500) though Shakira and Jennifer Lopez both showed cleavage (Both, -250), and Shakira was up first and performed "She Wolf" (+1200).
The lack of drama also meant most sportsbooks made a profit, with the betting public generally going for the more unusual and profitable props.
One particular prop bet ended up as a bad beat for many bettors, with the over-under on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes' rushing total turning the other way on the final possession. The total was set at 29.5 at most shops early on, and it rose as high as 36.5 before kickoff.
Mahomes had 44 rushing yards after scrambling for 27 in the fourth quarter. But Kansas City got the ball back on an interception in the final minute. With the title sealed, Mahomes kneeled down three times to run out the clock, for a total loss of 15 yards.
New Jersey-based PointsBet had the total set at 30.5, and it decided to refund all bettors who had the over and lost on the kneel-downs.
"Losing on that Mahomes rushing prop was pretty much the definition of a bad beat. Absolutely brutal," said Patrick Eichner, PointsBet Director of Communications. "Given the manner of the kneel-downs, with Mahomes getting the snap in the gun and running around for bigger losses than usual to take some more time off the clock, it just makes sense to issue a PointsBet Karma Kommittee refund."
The coin toss came up tails (-105), and Demi Lovato's rendition of the national anthem came in at 1:50, well under the two minutes set at many shops at +180. Lovato did stretch the "Brave" note at the song's conclusion over the 5.5 seconds (-155).
There were no points scored in the first 5:30 of the game, which cashed in at -140. The 49ers scored the first points (-110), and Mahomes scored the first touchdown (+2000) after Damien Williams (+500) and Darwin Thompson (+1600) were stuffed at the goal line.
The Kansas City rally also cashed in at -110 for bettors who believed there would be three unanswered scores.
Chiefs Coach Andy Reid got his first Super Bowl victory, and he was rewarded with an Orange Gatorade shower (+300). Mahomes won the game MVP award after accounting for three touchdowns, and he was available at +110 at many books.
Among some of the interesting cross-sports props, Damien Lillard scored 51 points and was giving 2.5 against the Chiefs' total points at -110, while Russell Westbrook scored 22 while getting 0.5 against San Francisco's total, also at -110.
Now, everybody will have a little time to recuperate after a long season. But if you are ready to get a jump on next year, Westgate has NFL futures odds for Super Bowl LV. The Chiefs are 5-1 to repeat, with the 49ers and Baltimore Ravens opening at 8-1.
