If anyone had told you back in August that the Super Bowl would feature the Seattle Seahawks vs. the New England Patriots, you probably would’ve looked at them like they had two heads. At least I know I would have.
This offseason, the Patriots handed the keys to an established and respected veteran in Mike Vrabel, hoping to turn around a franchise coming off an abysmal 4–13 2024/25 season. Expectations were modest; most thought they’d be better, but a year-one Super Bowl appearance was nowhere near the conversation. In fact, this marks just the eighth time in NFL history that a head coach has led his team to the Super Bowl in his first season. On the other side, Mike Macdonald was entering his second year in Seattle after guiding the Seahawks to a solid 10–7 record in his debut season. Following the signing of Sam Darnold, Vegas remained skeptical, setting Seattle’s win total at just 8.5 games.
At the start of the season on FanDuel, the Patriots opened at 80/1 to win the Super Bowl, while Seattle sat at 60/1. Week 1 didn’t help New England’s outlook, as they fell at home to the Las Vegas Raiders, immediately signaling what many believed could be another long year. That loss sent Patriots futures tumbling all the way to 175/1 in September. By October, New England had climbed back to 125/1, but an eye-opening primetime road win over Josh Allen and the Bills marked the end of those absurd prices. From there, the Patriots shortened to 50/1. Seattle followed a similar roller coaster: after dropping to 80/1 following a Week 1 loss to San Francisco, the Seahawks rattled off three straight wins and entered October at 35/1. Now Seattle sits at -225 to win it all.
In the end, this truly became the year of the underdog, and it’s one worth savoring. With both teams listed at over +8000 at various points this offseason, Super Bowl Sunday could be an expensive one for Vegas. Nobody expected either of these teams to make it this far, and because of that, the gambling community is sitting on some absolutely legendary slips you don’t see every season. Per @JeffreyBenson12 on X, a $100 bet on this exact matchup in the preseason with the Patriots winning would have paid out $310,000! We’ve got some incredible tickets featuring these teams live on our marketplace. And if you’re holding something you’d like to list, hit us up.
