NFL Draft Odds – Forgetting (to Hug) Roger Goodell (and so much more!)
The NFL Draft is traditionally a feel good day for everybody involved (well, except Jets fans, of course). Dreams come true for young players and teams are filled with the hope of a promising future. Heck, even Roger Goodell touches other human beings (more on this later) on this special day.
This year’s version has intrigue from the start. The Los Angeles Rams (sorry St. Louis) are on the clock and the first pick is going to be one of two quarterbacks. Jared Goff of California is the favored choice, but Carson Wentz of North Dakota St. has not been ruled out. Either way, the Philadelphia Eagles will likely take the other QB with the second overall pick.
For the second consecutive year the event will be held at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre. Boisterous fans of all 32 teams will voice their (dis)approval of each selection. We all get to play general manager and draft analyst and, since nobody actually wins or loses, we can all claim to be 100-percent correct at the end of the three-day event.
It’s an entertaining spectacle, but the time between selections can get a bit long if the only thing you’re worried about is where players will land. We can help you with that, in our usual way: a big ol’ list of crazy props! So in the time between selections, make sure you’re listening for references to Mel Kiper’s hair. Make sure you’re listening for a lot of ridiculous things, specifically …
2016 NFL Draft Odds and Props
NFL Team Props
Odds on which quarterback the Rams will select with the No. 1 overall pick:
Jared Goff (California): 1/4
Carson Wentz (North Dakota State): 4/1
Over/under on number of trades between 12:00 AM Eastern, April 28, and the end of the final round: 12.5
Odds the Titans trade the first pick of the second round before they use it: 5/1
Odds the Patriots trade up into the first-round: 4/1
Over/under on when the Browns will select a quarterback: 2nd round
Odds the Cowboys Trade the No. 4 pick: 15/4
Odds the Cowboys take the following player with the no. 4 pick (if not traded):
Ezekiel Elliott (Ohio State): 1/1
Joey Bosa (Ohio State): 5/2
Jalen Ramsey (Florida State): 4/1
Field: 14/1
Odds the Dallas Cowboys Draft a QB in Round 1 or 2: 3/2
Prospect/Player Props
Over/under on draft position for Robert Nkemdiche (Ole Miss): 30th overall (Oh neat! A push would send Robert and his potential pet Panther to Carolina!)
Over/under on draft position for injured linebacker Jaylon Smith (Notre Dame): 87th overall (The Bengals own the 87th pick. Unfortunately, Jaylon hasn’t tried to buy a tiger … yet.)
Over/under on draft position for the first punter/kicker: 191st overall
Odds to be the last player left in the green room (Marcus Martin-style):
Chris Jones (Mississippi St): 7/3
Keanu Neal (Florida): 4/1
Robert Nkemdiche (Ole Miss): 4/1
Vernon Butler (LA Tech): 9/1
FIELD: 4/1
Odds of being the first WR selected:
Laquon Treadwell (Ole Miss): 7/3
Josh Doctson (TCU): 7/3
Will Fuller (Notre Dame): 3/1
Corey Coleman (Baylor): 6/1
FIELD: 25/1
Odds that “Mr. Irrelevant” (the last selection of the draft) will be a …
Defensive player: 13/12
Offensive player: 13/12
Kicker or punter: 24/1
NCAA Conference/School Props
Odds on which conference will have the most first-round picks:
SEC: 3/2
Big Ten: 2/1
ACC: 7/1
Pac-12: 12/1
Big 12: 14/1
FIELD: 5,000/1
Odds on which conference will have most picks through all seven rounds:
SEC: 1/3
ACC : 15/2
Big Ten: 10/1
Pac-12: 24/1
Big 12: 40/1
FIELD: 1 billion/1
Odds on which school will have the most first-round picks:
Ohio State: 1/1
Alabama: 3/2
Clemson: 9/1
Over/under on number of first-round picks from non-Power 5 conferences: 4.5
Over/under on number of TCU players drafted: 4
ESPN/NFL NETWORK ODDS
Over/under on the number of on-air spats between Mel Kiper and Todd McShay during ESPN’s coverage: 5.5
Odds on whose final mock draft will have the most correct first-round selections:
Mel Kiper: 1/1
Mike Mayock: 2/1
Todd McShay: 5/2
Over/under on the number of references to Mil Kiper’s hair made by his ESPN colleagues during the first-round: .5
Odds on which network will spend more time talking about DeflateGate during its first-round coverage:
ESPN: 2/3
NFL Network: 3/2
Over/under on the number of times ESPN will show Jerry Jones during its first-round coverage: 2.5
Odds to be the first college coach interviewed by ESPN:
Sonny Dykes (California): 3/2
Chris Klieman (North Dakota State) : 3/1
Dabo Swinney (Clemson): 10/1
Urban Meyer (Ohio State): 12/1
Nick Saban (Alabama): 15/1
FIELD: 10/1
THE INTANGIBLES!
Odds on which player attending the draft will make the most outrageous fashion statement (as judged by me; no griping):
Shaq Lawson (Clemson): 6/1
Robert Nkemdiche (Ole Miss): 7/1
Joey Bosa (Ohio State): 8/1
Ezekiel Elliott (Ohio State): 8/1
Vernon Hargreaves (Florida): 10/1
Josh Doctson (TCU): 12/1
Myles Jack (UCLA): 12/1
Jalen Ramsey (FSU): 15/1
FIELD: 3/1
Odds the majority of Jets fans at the Auditorium Theatre will boo the team’s first pick: 2/3
Odds the majority of Bears fans at the Auditorium Theatre will boo the team’s first pick: 3/1
Over/under on the length of time Roger Goodell is booed when he first steps to the podium: 26 seconds
Over/under on the number of Thursday picks who appear on stage but do not hug Roger Goodell: 7.5 (A handshake and a back-pat does not a hug make. I’m talking full embraces, creepy neighbor-style.)
Odds Dabo Swinney cries during an on-air interview with ESPN or NFL Network: 12/1
(Photo credit: Zennie Abraham (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/legalcode].)
