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The Detroit Lions have had themselves an eventful free agency period, but apparently Las Vegas didn’t get the memo or just isn’t all that impressed.
Westgate Superbook Las Vegas released their latest odds for each division winner for the 2019 season, and they don’t like the Lions’ chances... at all. Not only do the Lions have the worst odds in the division, but they’re way behind all other three teams in the NFC North. Take a look:
2019 NFC North division odds:
Bears: 8/5
Vikings: 2/1
Packers: 2/1
Lions: 14/1
Now before we get all up in arms, it’s probably important to take a step back here. The Lions haven’t won a division title since 1993. They finished last year 6-10 and if not for a meaningless win in Week 17, they would’ve finished last in the division. Despite their impressive free agency haul, they still have a lot of needs and they have an entirely new offense to install just a year after completely changing their defense. In other words, there are plenty of legitimate reasons to have the Lions last in NFC North odds.
However, it’s pretty odd that a team with just about as many question marks (and a team that finished with a nearly identical record), the Green Bay Packers, have odds seven times shorter. Like the Lions, the Packers have had themselves an active free agency period, but they also find themselves in a particularly precarious situation right now:
I'm starting to hear the #Packers aren't in good salary cap shape as reported. Because of cap charges that weren't previously calculated, multiple sources say they are very tight after their most recent spending spree. One source estimated it was close to $5M under. We'll see.
— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) March 18, 2019
It’s fair to crown the Bears as NFC North favorites considering their domination of the division last year and the minimal changes to their roster this season. However, it’s a little strange seeing the Vikings right up there with 2-to-1 odds. There’s a lot of turmoil on the offensive line, questions about Kirk Cousins, and while they were able to miraculously retained Anthony Barr and Everson Griffen, they’re going to have to pay the piper on defense eventually.
Regardless, Vegas is going to continue to have long odds on the Lions until Detroit proves them otherwise. The team’s history and stigma is enough to have most people betting against them, and ultimately, that’s how these odds are formulated. If you need any more proof of that, take a look at Detroit’s Super Bowl odds, where they currently have the third-longest odds of any NFL team.
Super Bowl odds, via @betonline_ag. pic.twitter.com/8gcF7X836C
— Christopher Price (@cpriceNFL) March 18, 2019