Proposition Bets: Bet on Something Different on Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Prop Bets: What You’ll Learn

• Definition of Prop Bets: Proposition bets, commonly known as prop bets, allow bettors to wager on specific events or outcomes within the game rather than the final score. These can include individual player performances or unique game occurrences, such as the length of the national anthem.

• Timing of Bet Payouts: The payout timeline for Super Bowl prop bets varies depending on the nature of the bet. Some bets may be graded and paid out during the game, while others will only be settled at the end.

• Availability of Prop Bets: Most sportsbooks offer a wide array of Super Bowl prop bets, but online platforms often provide a more extensive selection, including exotic and special bets. This is largely due to fewer regulatory restrictions compared to physical sportsbooks, making them ideal for bettors looking for diverse betting options.

• Early Betting Odds and Updates: Prop bets are typically released shortly after the Super Bowl matchup is confirmed, with initial odds available for various player and game props. Sportsbooks may also offer hypothetical odds based on potential outcomes of the AFC and NFC Championship games, allowing bettors to get a head start on their wagers.

• Expert Insights and Analysis: To enhance betting strategies, bettors can access expert insights and predictions. Resources like USA TODAY provide unique betting analysis and expert picks, ensuring that bettors have informed perspectives as they consider their prop bets for the Super Bowl.

From coin flips to the length of the halftime show, everything seems up for grabs when it comes to betting on Super Bowl Sunday.

An unofficial American holiday, the Super Bowl is consistently one of the most watched sporting events in the United States with nearly 120 million people tuning in to see the most entertaining commercials, an epic halftime show and even two teams play football.

The Super Bowl is so big, over 22.6 million Americans will plan to skip work the next day and a quarter of the workforce admit they will be less productive that day!

With that much interest comes the desire to gamble. The American Gaming Association estimates that over $4 billion is wagered by 23 million Americans on the Super Bowl. But just betting on who will win the biggest game in football isn’t enough.

That’s where Proposition (or Prop) bets add to the enjoyment.

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What are Super Bowl Prop Bets?

Prop bets are wagers made for a sporting event that may not necessarily have to do with the final score. They may include anything that involves statistics or something that is timed.

For instance, in basketball, someone might try to wager a prop bet on how many three-pointers are made overall, by a team or an individual player.

Prop bets are increasing in popularity and many online casinos are accommodating this type of gambling. Players can go to individual games and find a list of prop bets they can wager on.

4 Common Types of Prop Bets

1. Player Prop Bets: These bets are player-focused. Wagers are based on an individual player’s performance in the game, such as how many pitches a pitcher throws in a baseball game before they are relieved.

2. Team Prop Bets: These bets are team-focused. Wagers are based on how the overall team does on a specific action, such as how many points a basketball team will score. It doesn’t matter if they win or lose, the bet is based on just the points.

3. Game Prop Bets: These don’t necessarily have to do with the game itself but aspects around the game. For example, at the Super Bowl, gamblers will wager on who wins the coin toss to start the game.

4. Novelty Prop Bets: These are the weird, fun bets that can be almost anything. One example for this Super Bowl is whether Travis Kelce will propose to Taylor Swift at the big game. By the way, there is a 11.76% chance of that happening, according to FanDuel. And yes, you can bet on it.

Standard Super Bowl Bets

Before we get into the wild and weird prop bets people make regarding the Super Bowl, let’s take a quick look at the standard bets that people wager. Many of these can be considered prop bets along with the standard bet to win.

• Who Will Win the Game? This is the standard bet if you’re wanting a simple and easy wager for the Super Bowl. For Super Bowl 59, it’s a matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. The Chiefs are favored to win.

• Coin Toss. The coin toss is the most popular Prop Bet when it comes to the Super Bowl. The likely winner is…a coin toss. Over the previous 58 Super Bowls, tails have come up 30 times and heads 28 times.

• What Color is the Gatorade? A tradition in sports is for the players to dump the Gatorade cooler on the coach of the winning team. Purple is the favorite but there are several colors to bet on as well as betting that the coach won’t get the ritual “Gatorade bath” at all.

• Quarterback Bets. As one of the most important and scrutinized positions in football, Prop Bets for individual players are often made regarding the quarterback. These bets include how many passing touchdowns, interceptions and rushing yards that quarterback will have.

• Other Player Bets. The quarterback is often the star but other breakout players will have prop bets placed on them. Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is a popular figure in football and has prop bets such as rushing yards, rushing attempts and odds of him scoring a touchdown being wagered regarding his performance.

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Super Bowl Prop Bets

We’ve mentioned coin tosses and Gatorade but there are Super Bowl Prop Bets that get wilder and crazier. It seems like everything is up for grabs so if you want to wager on some whacky bets, here are some of the Super Bowl Prop Bets available.

Super Bowl Game Prop Bets

• Who will score first?

• Will the game end with an odd or even point total?

• Which team will have the most points at the end of the first half?

• Who will win MVP? As of right now, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is considered the favorite followed by Saquon Barkley (Eagles), Jalen Hurts (Eagles) and Taylor Swift beau Travis Kelce (Chiefs)

National Anthem Prop Bets

Even though it’s a small part of a major event, there are Prop Bets surrounding the national anthem and its singer Jon Batiste.

• How long will it take to sing? As of now, the over/under is 120.5 seconds. Alicia Keyes has the longest performance at 2 minutes and 36 seconds whereas Neil Diamond takes the brevity cake with the shortest performance at 62 seconds.

• Will anyone cry? That’s right, you can bet on whether or not a player or coach will cry during the national anthem.

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Past Prop Bets

If something unusual happened in a previous Super Bowl, it’s a good bet that you can wager on whether or not it will happen again.

• Power outage. In 2013, there was a power outage at the Superdome that delayed the game for 34 minutes.

• Wardrobe malfunction. In 2004, during the halftime show, Janet Jackson had a breast exposed due to a “wardrobe malfunction” by Justin Timberlake.

• Overtime. Out of 58 games, only two went into overtime: 2017 and 2023

All these and more are bets you can place will or will not happen.

Halftime Show Prop Bets

Kendrick Lamar is the Super Bowl Halftime Show entertainment with plenty of surprise guests lined up and songs to sing. Here are some of the most popular bets surrounding halftime.

• What will Grammy winner Kendrick Lamar’s first song be? As of now, Humble is the odds favorite. On the flip side, All the Stars is favored to be his last song.

• How many songs will be in the set? The over/under is set at 10.5 and it seems the last few years many performers exceeded 10.5 songs.

• How long will the halftime show be? In 2024, Usher broke the record for longest halftime show at 15 minutes surpassing Lady Gaga’s 13.5 minutes in 2017.

Super Bowl Prop Bets

Prop Bets are almost always available regardless of the game. Unless it’s a major event though, like the Super Bowl, your options will be limited to player or team performance.

If you’re eager to try a bet a little different, the Super Bowl is one of the best ways to place some of the unusual bets and make smaller moments within the game more exciting.

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