For the Philadelphia Eagles, the future is now.
Carson Wentz is entering his fourth season without the shackles of a knee brace. Executive Vice President/General Manager Howie Roseman spent the offseason plugging holes and adding depth. Eagles fans will hold their breath and hope the team can get through training camp and the preseason without any major injuries.
The future, and time to place NFL futures bets, is finally here.
Is another Super Bowl in the Philadelphia Eagles future?
For Philadelphia Eagles fans, it’s a “Super Bowl or bust” kind of season. Pundits and oddsmakers also hold the Eagles in high regard.
The Eagles have the fifth-lowest Super Bowl odds +1300 to win at online sportsbook PlaySugarHouse.com.
To win the NFC Championship, the Birds are +550. The New Orleans Saints +400 and Los Angeles Rams +425 are listed with better odds. It’s no doubt a sore spot with Bird bettors.
The Doug Pederson-led Birds beat the Rams the past two years. Eagles fans have been anticipating the start of the season since they were ousted last year in the Divisional Round of the playoffs by the Saints. The Eagles were 27 yards away from a game-winning touchdown when Nick Foles’s pass slipped through Alshon Jeffrey’s hands into the arms of Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore.
With an over/under win total of 10 the Eagles are a clear favorite win to the NFC East at -106. PlaySugarHouse Sportsbook considers them a shoo-in to make the playoffs, with those odds at -182.
Betting big on the home team
Eagles fans’ passion for the birds has spread to the sportsbook. Even before the preseason, the fans are flocking to place bets on the Eagles.
“Philly fans are very passionate about their teams, and the Eagles are the No. 1 team in town. More than half the handle on the Super Bowl winner future bets have been placed on the Eagles lifting the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the night. Same with their star quarterback…over 50% of bets and handle on who will win the MVP has so far been placed on Carson Wentz,” said Chief Operating Officer of Rush Street Interactive Mattias Stetz. RSI’s parent company, Rush Street, owns and operate SugarHouse.
Carson Wentz futures bets
Wentz’s ability to stay healthy throughout an entire season will be the key to this season and beyond. The quarterback signed a four-year, $128 million contract extension in June.
When healthy, Wentz has shown he is worth the hefty price tag and his place on the list of futures bets.
He currently holds the sixth-best odds (+1,600) to claim Offensive Player of the Year and sixth-best for MVP as well (+1,400).
A December back fracture sidelined Wentz for the remainder of the 2018 season. The injury makes for an interesting futures bet for Comeback Player of the Year, where the line on him is +800.
The Wentz futures markets also include total regular-season passing yards. The over/under currently sits at 3,950.5. The over/under for total regular-season touchdowns is set at 28.5.
Wentz’s career-high for passing yards (3,782) occurred during his rookie season in 2016. He reached his highest touchdown pass total (33) in 2017.
Zach Ertz betting markets
Last season, Zach Ertz broke the NFL record for receptions in a season by a tight end with 116. How will the acquisition of DeSean Jackson, a well-rounded running game with the addition of Jordan Howard and Miles Sanders, along with the projected emergence of second-year tight end Dallas Goedert impact his touches?
Futures markets for Ertz:
- Over/under on regular-season total receiving yards: 875.5
- Over/under on regular-season total receiving touchdowns: 6.5
- Offensive Player of the Year: +25,000
Ertz surpassed 875 receiving yards only once in his five-year career. In 2017, he racked up 1163 yards. Ertz recorded eight touchdowns in both 2017 and 2018.
Other Philadelphia Eagles futures bets
Wentz: Most passing yards +2200
Fletcher Cox: Most sacks (+5,000), Defensive Player of the Year (+6,000)
Miles Sanders: Rookie of the Year (+1,400), Most rushing yards (+6,600)
JJ Arcega-Whiteside: Rookie of the Year (+3,300)
Andre Dillard: Rookie of the Year (+25,000)
Jordan Howard: Most rushing yards (+10,000)
Alshon Jeffery and DeSean Jackson: Offensive Player of the Year (+25,000)
Brandon Graham: Defensive Player of the Year (+5,000)
Philadelphia Eagles game lines
The Eagles start their season on Sept. 8 at home as 9-point favorites against division rival Washington Redskins. The following week, the Falcons are slight underdogs +1.5 in the battle of the birds. In Week 3, the Eagles are 8.5 favorites against the visiting Detroit Lions.
“Baseball is still dominating the day-to-day betting, but we are seeing a lot of NFL action as well. Win totals for the teams, division winners, conference winners and Super Bowl champions are the most popular future bets,” added Stetz. “We’re actually already seeing a lot of bets on Week 1. It seems like the players see some early value in the early lines for Week 1.”
SugarHouse first in Pennsylvania for sports betting
In its first full month of operation in June, PlaySugarHouse.com Pennsylvania accepted $18.2 million in wagers, generating $465,096 in revenue. SugarHouse Casino brick-and-mortar sportsbook retail handle was $5,160,836, generating $467,016 in revenue.
That number will only grow with the start of football.
“Football is the No. 1 betting sport in the United States, both college and NFL So being able to offer our players a safe and trusted place to bet on both NFL and college before the start of the season was hugely important,” said Stetz. “We already knew the importance of being live before the season. Once a player tries our product and enjoys our loyalty benefits and odds boosts, we are convinced they will stick to us for the entire football season and beyond.”
