What Can You Bet On In The Super Bowl

As communicators gear up for Super Bowl LV, many are embracing social media content to boost their efforts.

Sure, you can head out to one of the many legal retail sportsbooks in New York to bet on Super Bowl 55 this week, but they aren’t as convenient to many New Yorkers (especially those living in NYC) as legal online sportsbooks in neighboring New Jersey are.

HOUSTON — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers weren't the only big winners on Super Bowl night. Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale had a good night, too. The Gallery Furniture owner bet $3.46 million on the. New users who sign up here can get $1,000 deposit match and get +100 odds on a touchdown to be scored in the Super Bowl on a max bet of $50. That means users can double their money simply if a. Chiefs vs Saints Super Bowl Moneyline Bet. Kansas City Chiefs -150. New Orleans Saints +175. With these Super Bowl betting odds from NFL betting sites, those betting on Kansas City would have to wager $150 to win a profit of $100 in return. Those betting on New Orleans would have to bet.

BET Networks is gearing up for its annual “Super Bowl Gospel Celebration,” which is a star-studded “ultimate praise party” on Feb. 6 that features National Football League athletes, artists, content creators, celebrities and more:

The lineup of talent for this year's Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is amazing!
Be sure to tune in this Saturday, Feb. 6 at 8/7 pm CST. Only airing on @BET. #SuperBowlGospel#music#faith#gospel#gospelmusic#BET#SBLV#TampaLV#NothingCanStopUspic.twitter.com/3xSb9KnhGz

— Super Bowl Gospel (@SuperBowlGospel) February 3, 2021

Whether you’re crafting content to accompany the big game or are looking for ways to boost your messages and creative efforts, consider these four takeaways from T.J. Barber, director of social media and strategy for ViacomCBS’ BET Networks:

1. Create content that your audience considers valuable.

For last year’s Super Bowl, BET produced a video featuring social media influencer “NotKarltonBanks” quizzing celebrities and athletes on biblical trivia, which racked up a combined 2 million views across social media platforms:

The network also grabbed more than 3 million views with another video promoting its “Soul Train Awards,” which featured actresses and co-hosts Tisha Campbell and Tichina Arnold in a “mukbang”—a popular online show format from Korea where hosts eat food as they discuss various topics. The secret to BET’s success? Create videos your audience actually cares about.

Barber says:

We’ve provided our audience with content they love consuming (i.e., Mukbang, comedy, trivia and never-heard-of stories) in [formats] they don’t often see on the BET Networks platform. “What the MUK is going on?” was our first ever mukbang attempt and the series “Church Card Revoked” captured on the “Super Bowl Gospel Celebration” red carpet in 2020 allowed us to have fun with faith and spirituality.

When producing videos or other social media content, consider your audience first, then brainstorm ways you can weave your brand’s voice and messages into the content and trends your fans love. Remember: It’s not all about you or your organization.

“We met the audience where they are instead of asking the audience to join us for the content the creators like to produce,” Barber says.

[RELATED: Join Ragan's Communications Leadership Council, exclusively for leaders in employee and internal communications]

2. Lean into insights, data and trends.

Newsjacking and internet trends can provide many opportunities for social media pros to make a splash and strengthen brand loyalty, but you have to know the latest fads before you can brainstorm ways to infuse your organization’s offerings and brand into them.

“Don’t be afraid of data,” Barber says.

Dig into social listening and brand sentiment across digital media channels or dig into audience segmentation analytics to help you better understand, reach and resonate with your target audience(s).

“Use data to learn more about the audience you have and the audience you hope to obtain,” Barber says. “Let the data help you create content to reach your audience and create a community.”

Data and insights can help you uncover tastemakers and emerging trends, too. “Work with the originators of trends instead of those who become famous for copying them and not providing credit,” Barber says.

You can also use data and insights, along with a history of showing the ROI of your efforts, to position yourself as a trusted expert within your organization. This can help you to redirect requests that won’t help you meet your campaign and engagement goals.

3. Select the right partners.

Influencers are an important part of many organizations’ content creation efforts—and choosing your content creator cohort shouldn’t be a decision you make lightly. Do your research, and look beyond vanity metrics.

“Don’t choose an influencer and/or content creator solely based on their numbers,” Barber says.

Instead, consider the influencer’s online community, engagement, previous content and overall brand—and ask yourself if those items align with your goals and organization’s values. Also, map out your ideal partnership and whether that influencer will be able to produce the desired results.

Barber says:

Make sure your content will resonate with their audience. Does the partnership truly make sense? Will they actually engage with the content once posted? Do they actually deliver on the impressions promised?

Once you find the perfect influencer partner, ensure your relationship is mutually beneficial.

Barber says you must pay content creators what they are worth: “Stop trying to get individuals to do the most for the least bit of money.”

Barber also cautions against stealing from BIPOC content creators and claiming their work as your own. These actions can quickly destroy trust and brand reputation.

Selecting the right partners extends past your chosen content creator or influencer, too. Look for was you can partner with social media platforms, industry veterans and more—especially as you grapple with engaging consumers throughout the COVID-19 crisis.

Barber says:

Work with your vendor platform partners to know their best practices. If you’re spending money in a platform, make sure you have a rep who can work with you. If that isn’t possible, gather with your counterparts to share best practices, join groups where your peers are willing to share what they know, and/or read, read, read.

4. Repurpose and promote your content across social media platforms.

Last year, BET created a 2020 “Super Bowl Gospel Celebration” YouTube playlist, featuring videos from the show and red carpet, but also distributed and repurposed the content for social media efforts that lasted long after Super Bowl weekend.

“The content you create should have a long-lasting shelf life,” Barber says, “which may mean adjusting contracts with talent so your content isn’t specific to one creative.”

With every piece of content you create, consider how you can repurpose and distribute it on other social media platforms and channels. Barber says this could include crafting GIFs or memes from your videos, remembering to tailor each piece of repurposed content to the platform and audience.

BET’s Tenor profile and GIPHY channel are treasure troves of GIFs from its series and award shows. Some even include the BET+ branding, such as this GIF from the network’s “First Wives Club” series:

BET’s stickers also provide fans with its series’ characters and moments, in a format meant for Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook stories:

BET is also promoting its “Super Bowl Gospel Celebration” this year with tweets on its Twitter profiles, including @BETGospel, @SuperBowlGospel and a pinned tweet on its main Twitter account:

Join us for a night of faith, family, football, and inspiration with the 22nd Annual NFL Sanctioned #SuperBowlGospel Celebration hosted by @RickeySmiley, Saturday February 6 8/7c! Let's go! pic.twitter.com/ckHCKOKUkL

— BET (@BET) January 30, 2021

A short-form video touting performer Koryn Hawthorne’s appearance also appears on BET’s Instagram feed, and the hashtag #SuperBowlGospel enables Barber and her team to monitor the conversation across social media platforms:

You can learn more social media and digital content insights from Barber at Ragan’s Social Media & Digital Communications Conference, March 16. She will be joined by speakers from Dropbox, Microsoft, UPS, Chip and Joanna Gaine’s Magnolia, Dictionary.com, LinkedIn and more. Register by March 2 to save $100.


Back to Log In

Back to Log In
Forgot to set up an account? Set it up now.Having trouble? Contact cservice@ragan.com or 1-800-878-5331Trouble logging in? Contact cservice@ragan.com or 1-800-878-5331
  • Best Bets for Super Bowl 2021
  • Finding the Best Super Bowl Bets
  • Bad Super Bowl Bets to Avoid
  • Best Times to Bet on the Super Bowl
  • Going Away

We all love watching the Super Bowl, and there aren’t many people who don’t like making some extra money. Doing the two simultaneously? Now that’ll stimulate your interest quickly!

With so many bets available and so many avenues to place them, preparing yourself to profitably bet on the Super Bowl can be a bit overwhelming. The good news is that landing on this page will melt all of your worries away.

The goal of this guide to the best Super Bowl bets is to provide you with the information you need to place the right wager when the big game arrives. Not only will do showcase which Super Bowl bets are the best, we also advise you on which Super Bowl betting markets to avoid.

If that wasn’t enough, our resident football betting experts also offer up their best bets for Super Bowl 55 right here.

Best Bets for Super Bowl 2021

Noah Davis and Michael Wynn have spent the last two weeks scouring Super Bowl 55 betting markets. After combing the safest sites to find the most appealing prices, they’ve each settled on their three best Super Bowl bets.

Here they are.

  • Travis Kelce to Score a TD (-164)
  • Over 56.6 (-110)
  • Patrick Mahomes Over 0.5 1st Q TDs (+125)

Travis Kelce is en fuego heading into Super Bowl 55, scoring at least one touchdown in each of his last six games. He feels like such a lock to score a touchdown, that Chad Johnson bet Kelce would be the big game’s first score – and if not, he’d quit Twitter.

Kelce is a big reason why this game is going to be perhaps one of the most explosive Super Bowls ever. These teams combined for 51 points in an earlier meeting, and it won’t take much to get them over the hump.

Mahomes is also a key part of this game, and I think he gets off to a hot start. He only needs one touchdown pass to return sick value at +125.

  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers +3.5 (-115)
  • Jim Nantz says “Queen Latifah” More Than Once (+110)
  • Mike Evans to Score a Touchdown (+120)

With the Super Bowl 55 odds oscillating between 3 and 3.5 depending on where you bet, I’m keen on latching onto the Bucs as long as I get the hook. Tampa Bay has the more potent defense, the game is at home, and that Tom Brady guy is pretty good at motivating his teammates.

Highlighted as one of my favorite bets in this complete guide to Super Bowl props, this thing is close to being a slam-dunk. Queen Latifah is starring in The Equalizer, a new show debuting on CBS right after the Super Bowl ends. Surely Jim Nantz will be directed to plug the new series a couple of times, especially considering he and Queen Latifah both spent time living in the same small town in New Jersey.

Shout out to Colts Neck Township.

I agree with Noah that Travis Kelce is going to reach pay dirt. However, another player prop I fancy is Mike Evans finding the end zone at +120. The odds are incredibly juicy, and the numbers are in our favor.

He scored touchdowns in each of his last two game, and scored two touchdowns vs. the Chiefs in Week 12.

Finding the Best Super Bowl Bets

Shopping your lines to ensure that you’re tracking down the most favorable odds is a big part of setting yourself up for success. At the same time, you’ll want to make sure you’re placing wagers at online sportsbooks that can be trusted.

Sticking to the best Super Bowl betting sites gives you the best of both worlds. Not only will you spot discrepancies in the pricing and be able to latch onto value, but you’ll feel confident knowing these sites are extremely reputable.

Chances are, you’re already familiar with betting NFL games online, so you already know that the available bets can be wide-ranging. However, the enormity of what’s out there for the Super Bowl is unlike anything else in the sports betting industry.

The key is to target the bets that have the highest likelihood of paying off. We’ll share a few examples below.

The best bet here is typically to back the quarterback of the team that you project to win the game. Heading into Super Bowl 53, seven of the previous nine Super Bowl MVPs were the QB of the team who raised the Lombardi Trophy.

Julian Edelman was honored as the Most Valuable Player in SB 53, although he was just the third offensive player who wasn’t a quarterback to win the award in the last 25 years. Of the five individuals in NFL history who have won the SB MVP multiple times, all five are QBs.

In a nutshell, trying to pinpoint a wide receiver or a running back typically won’t deliver a return on your investment. In fact, betting on a defender to win the Super Bowl MVP is also like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Through the first 53 Super Bowls, 43 of the MVPs were offensive players.

Surely some of you are experienced with live-betting NFL games. For those who are not, the Super Bowl game is the perfect time to get your feet wet.

Once the second quarter ends, a lot of people are going to be focused on the halftime show and all of the festivities that are included. Our recommendation is to spend that time scanning the best sportsbooks looking to lock in some serious value.

The most transparent way of explaining why value is easier to “unlock” during halftime is because oddsmakers simply don’t have enough information and data to perfect their projections. The odds at this point will be “softer” or less accurate than the ones that are set before the game.

Because these lines are being set on the fly, there’s a good chance you’ll see numerous wagers pop up that immediately catch your attention. It’s a great time to find some of the best Super Bowl bets available.

Don’t Worry About Trying to Bet Everything

Betting value often lies in the simple bets. Moneyline wagers, point spreads, and totals are often about the best bets for the Super Bowl. It’s hard to ignore all prop bets available, though.

Once you start peering at all of the Super Bowl prop bets, it won’t take long to realize just how many options there are. You’ll drive yourself crazy trying to cover them all, so you need to be selective.

Winning money on the Super Bowl is about capturing value. It’s not about trying to expose yourself to every betting market that exists.

Instead of focusing on the props that were designed for entertainment, concentrate on the ones that you can find an edge in. Perhaps that could be a specific individual going over his projected total for rushing or receiving yards, or maybe it’s a crossover bet that involves another athlete from another sport that you’re familiar with.

The lesson here is to forget about trying to pursue action on all the wagers available. Remember, your goal is to find the best bets for the Super Bowl, not places as many as wagers as you can. Emphasize quality over quantity.

Now that we’ve spent some time establishing the best Super Bowl bets you should attack, it’s vital to reveal some of the ones you should dodge. The main idea here is to steer clear of the bets that are somewhat arbitrary. Likewise, stay away from the wagers where no edge is attached.

Betting on the coin toss or betting on what color tie the commentator will be wearing aren’t going to scoop money in the long run. On that note, here are some other Super Bowl bets to avoid.

Anything to Do With the Commercials

The commercials are meant to be entertaining. They’re meant to be funny and memorable, but let’s just leave it at that.

The oddsmakers at the top football betting sites are fully aware of the increased demand to offer wagers related to the commercials. Every year, there is a sizable chunk of individuals who are more intrigued by what commercials will be shown compared to anything that has to do with the game itself.

What gets lost is that the targeted audience is typically made up of casual fans. These are the same folks who are generally less concerned with finding value and more captivated by the entertainment aspect the bets provide.

Chances are, any Super Bowl bets that have to do with the commercials are what we would call “sucker bets.”

The odds for your favorite team or some of the longshots are going to be extremely alluring, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good idea to fire away. It’s easy to do, but don’t get infatuated by the potential return on your investment.

The likelihood of some teams winning next year’s super bowl aren’t slim, they’re none.

This isn’t a disclaimer to stay away from Super Bowl futures bets altogether, it’s just a warning that you should be sensible about it. Predicting that teams can go from a 5-11 record to winning the lot the very next year is going to burn a hole through your pocket quickly.

We’ve alluded to this in a prior segment, but the bookies understand the demand and interest for certain prop bets. For this reason, they have the leverage to generate odds that lean in their favor.

The way to combat this is to not fall into the trap and place a wager when BOTH sides are listed at -120. That’s simply too much juice to try and overcome in the long run. Doing it once in a while if the spot seems right is one thing, but don’t expect to turn a profit down the road if you are always laying -120.

Fortunately, there will be loads of other Super Bowl bets available with more appealing price tags attached.

Don’t Fade the Safety Bet

One of the prop bets that always draws interest before the Super Bowl is betting on whether or not there will be a safety. You’ll likely have to lay in the neighborhood of -1000 to fade this bet.

The upside just isn’t there. We’ll unveil some quick math to prove that theory.

Across the 2017 and 2018 NFL regular seasons, we witnessed a total of 25 safeties in 512 games. That means a safety occurred in slightly less than 5% of the games. And even though we saw 17 safeties during the 2019 regular season, that still equates to just 6.6% of the time.

If you are going to lay -1000 on a bet, you need to win it a lot more than 6.6% of the time to be successful in the long haul.

Those planning on risking $500 just to win $50 – you’re betting off allocating that $500 elsewhere.

Timing is everything in life, and some could say it’s the same when it comes to placing Super Bowl bets.

Bets for the Super Bowl game itself are usually released almost as soon as the AFC and NFC Championship games end.

Once the big game is over, it then doesn’t take long for the betting sites to start posting futures odds for the next year’s Super Bowl.

Right off the bat is an intriguing time to start firing away in both of these markets, before any lines seriously start getting adjusted.

Futures Bets Before the Season Starts

Let’s say the Baltimore Ravens were installed at +2200 to win the Super Bowl before the season began. If you have an inkling that the Ravens are going to have a big year and make some noise in the playoffs, then locking that wager in before the season begins makes a lot of sense.

If you wait a few weeks and Baltimore is 3-0, you can kiss that +2200 price tag goodbye.

This is where you can take advantage of sportsbooks overreacting to mid-season disappointments. A perfect example is the Kansas Chiefs in 2019. KC was +400 to win Super Bowl 54 for a while but fell to 6-4 through ten weeks. Patrick Mahomes was just coming off a pretty severe knee injury. Heading into Week 11, the Chiefs had ballooned to +1000 to win the Super Bowl.

Next thing you know, the Chiefs won their next six games and clinched a bye during Wild Card Weekend. Backing Kansas City at that point meant settling for their +350 price tag.

The moral of the story here is to take advantage of when situations like these arise. At the very least, you could sell that +1000 ticket on the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl or start hedging your action. Either way, you can secure yourself a profit.

Vegas super bowl proposition bets

Futures Bets During the Playoffs

Once the playoffs get underway, the Super Bowl futures prices start dwindling. As each round of the postseason progresses, these prices shrink up even more. Due to the diminished upside, it’s okay to pass.

However, if you see a team with a price that really piques your interest, charge full steam ahead. Just don’t expect the odds to get any better once teams start getting eliminated.

Once the Super Bowl matchup has been determined, the floodgates burst wide open. This is when the sites will start unleashing Super Bowl props left and right.

Be sure to set aside ample time in the two-week runup to the games to browse through the selection. Equally important, decide how much money you are willing to risk on your bets. Otherwise, you could run out of funds before your eyes are opened to the full scope of wagers.

Super Bowl Bets on the Day of or During the Game

With the amount of money that comes pouring in on the Super Bowl in the days prior to kickoff, the bookmakers on Super Bowl Sunday is like pandemonium. If you plan on waiting until Sunday afternoon to get in on the action, the virtual sportsbooks will be your best option.

The lines at the land-based sportsbooks and bookmaking shops will be irritatingly long, so betting on the Super Bowl online will be your best course of action. The same rule applies during the game for those who want to live bet on the Super Bowl.

Between the drama in the game and being amongst friends and family at Super Bowl parties, not everyone will want to be on their phone or tablet trying to take part in the in-game betting. While that’s all fine and dandy, those same people might end up missing out on a ton of value.

This Super Bowl best bets guide was produced so that you didn’t have to scour the internet looking for Super Bowl betting advice. It’s all right here at your disposal.

Our goal was to organize everything you could possibly want to know about the best Super Bowl bets in one clean page.

Super Bowl Prop Bets List

We talked about where to find the best bets for the Super Bowl and which ones you should avoid, and discussed the optimal timing of certain Super Bowl wagers. In other words, your foundation to bet on the Super Bowl the right way is set.