Columnist Jeff Haney Gives Us A Pre-Game Look At Some Far From Spectacular Yet Nevertheless Profitable Super Bowl Opportunities That Are Probably Going To Appear On The Betting Boards

The Super Bowl is now less than two weeks away and the thinking of sports wagers  in Las Vegas are turning in the direction of the propositions opportunities, or what are referred to as "props,".  These are the individual and often offbeat wagering possibilities that are being made available through sports books with regard to the big game.
Those props that are considered as being really fun such as over/under with regard to the statistics of individual players and other things like this will only come later. The "cross-sport" props will also come later. These are props that link various aspects of the Super Bowl game to that day's hockey, basketball, or golf activity.

Some of the old reliable standbys are the ones that are being considered at first. These are considered as being the nuts-and-bolts props that you can always count on as appearing on the betting boards every year.
Although these props often are not considered as being sexy or particularly creative, but they have historically been profitable for astute bettors. Here are some common examples:

* Betting on Overtime
It depends on your method of analysis but it represents the odds against the Super Bowl going into overtime play which is likely about between the odds of 15-1 to 20-1. However, if recent years are in any way indicative, bettors will be allowed the opportunity of laying a much shorter price betting that the game will not go into overtime. This will probably be around a minus-600 to minus-800.
This is an example of an "overlay," which means a wager that gives bettors favorable odds.
As an example, this time last year the sports book at the Palms afford the "no overtime" bet at a minus-600. This means that a $6 bet will win $1. At the Las Vegas Hilton this prop opened at minus-700. At Harrah's and again at the Rio it was set at minus-850. Even at these prices it could be considered a very good bet.

* The total turnovers bet
Teams that make it to the Super Bowl usually are able to hold on to the ball. The over/under on fumbles that are lost by both teams is typically set at 1 1/2. The Hilton last year opened this at minus-130.
2 1/2 is the over/under on interceptions for both teams that is usually set. At the Hilton last year the under was set at minus-180, while the over was plus-150.

Both of these want over last year so expect good prices when betting under.
* Possibility of either team scoring during the last two minutes of the first half.
When the Patriots and Eagles paid last year the over/under was 47 points, while the odds that a team would score in the last two minutes of the first half were set at minus-250.

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