Bettor places $1,000 MVP wagers on Super Bowl kickers
By David Purdum
The Super Bowl can make bettors do strange things, such as wagering big bucks on a kicker to win MVP.
On Feb. 1, a bettor in New Jersey with sportsbook BetRivers placed a pair of $1,000 MVP bets on each of the starting kickers in Sunday's game:
- $1,000 on the New England Patriots' Andy Borregales at 300-1 to win $300,000.
- $1,000 on the Seattle Seahawks' Jason Myers at 100-1 to win $100,000.
A spokesperson for BetRivers said the sportsbook had taken only a handful of MVP bets on the kickers, "although several of them are relatively large." No kicker has ever been named MVP of the Super Bowl.
DraftKings also reported taking a $1,000 MVP bet on Myers at 100-1 and a $500 bet on Borregales at 200-1.
Joey Feazel, head of football trading for Caesars Sportsbook, said there has been interest on Borregales at his shop.
"Longer odds, that's really what a lot of bettors are trying to find during the Super Bowl, something that's not the greatest probability, but it has a decent price," Feazel said.
Quarterbacks have been named MVP in 34 of 59 Super Bowls, including five of the last six. Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold is the MVP favorite in Super Bowl LX, listed at +115 on Thursday at DraftKings Sportsbook, followed by Patriots quarterback Drake Maye at +240.
Wide receivers have won eight MVPs, followed by running backs with seven. Ten defensive players have won the award: four linebackers, two defensive ends, two safeties, one safety and one defensive tackle.
In other long-shot MVP wagers, Hard Rock Bet reports taking a $1,000 bet on Seattle cornerback Devon Witherspoon to win Super Bowl MVP at 150-1, and $100 bets on three Seahawks defenders: defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (150-1), safety Julian Love (500-1) and defensive tackle Leonard Williams (100-1).