Friday Live Blog: Sports Betting News As NFL’s First Week Arrives

The Detroit Lions stunned the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday in the NFL regular-season opener, marking the second straight year that the defending Super Bowl champion lost in the opening game of the season.

With Chiefs All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce sidelined by a knee injury, the Lions secondary stifled Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense in the second half. After halftime, Mahomes went just 9-of-22 for 79 yards in the 21-20 loss. A third-quarter drop by Kadarius Toney trickled into the hands of Lions defensive back Brian Branch, who ran the interception back 50 yards for a touchdown. Toney had another key drop on the Chiefs’ final drive of the game.

Kelce’s status created considerable line fluctuations throughout the week, especially on Thursday evening, when speculation mounted that he would miss the opener. The vast majority of the nation’s top sports betting sites closed with the Chiefs between -4 and -4.5, with FanDuel dropping the line to Kansas City -3.5. From Tuesday morning until kickoff, moneyline wagers on the Chiefs comprised 51% of the handle, according to a DraftKings spokesperson. When the NFL released the opening week schedule in the spring, numerous operators listed the Chiefs as 7-point favorites.

We are now less than 72 hours from the first Sunday of the NFL season. When teams release their respective injury lists on Friday, bettors will receive a stronger indication of which key players may be on the fence for their Week 1 openers. Over the course of this week, Sports Handle has been tracking all of the major football-related news surrounding the betting industry through a series of daily live blogs.

9:30 a.m.: Goodell addresses sports betting

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell attended Thursday’s season opener from a seat at Arrowhead Stadium next to Lloyd Howell, executive director of the NFL Players Association. In June, the NFLPA Board of Player Representatives elected Howell to succeed longtime NFLPA executive DeMaurice Smith.

Before the game, Goodell addressed the league’s sports betting policy in an interview with NBC broadcaster Mike Tirico. The NFL is coming off an offseason in which 10 current or former players received suspensions for violating the league’s policy on sports wagering. Sports Handle broke an exclusive story in June, detailing allegations that former Colts defensive back Isaiah Rodgers Sr. placed hundreds of wagers on a sports betting app, including many from his Colts locker. ESPN later reported that Rodgers placed a $1,000 bet on a teammate to hit the over on a rushing yardage prop during a 2022 game.

Weeks later, Rodgers was one of a handful of players the NFL suspended for violating the policy. Following the season-long suspension, the Colts released Rodgers, who had been expected to start at cornerback. (The Eagles signed Rodgers in late August, then subsequently placed him on the team’s reserve/suspended list.)

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, live on CNBC, says “all our policies will evolve” related to sports betting after several players violated league gambling policy.

— A.J. Perez (@byajperez) July 13, 2023

On the same day that Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear placed the state’s first legal sports wager, Tirico asked Goodell if the NFL can reconcile gambling as a commercial entity given the rash of suspensions. Earlier this summer, the NFL extended a partnership with Genius Sports, the league’s official gatekeeper for sports betting data. The multi-year deal with Genius is worth more than $1 billon.

Goodell stressed that ensuring the integrity of the game is the league’s top priority when it comes to sports betting. As with the NFL, a host of other major sports leagues restrict their players from placing wagers on the sport they participate in. The NFL’s policy differs in that players are restricted from placing bets on any sport from inside a league facility.

“This isn’t just about players. It affects every league employee, every club employee,” Goodell told NBC. “It’s pretty simple. If you bet on the NFL and you’re a part of the NFL, you’ve got a problem.”

8:30 a.m.: Chiefs, Eagles now co-favorites

Following their breakthrough win, the Lions had odds of +800 at DraftKings to win the NFC, fourth-best among all teams in the conference. Earlier this week, the Lions had the highest percentage of handle — 22% — on the NFC market. The Lions opened the week around +1100 to make their first Super Bowl appearance.

One DraftKings customer placed a $5,000 wager on the Lions to win the conference (+1000) that would pay $50,000. Another has a Lions Super Bowl ticket that carries a $70,000 payout on a bet of $2,000.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff downplayed the victory, telling NBC sideline reporter Melissa Stark that his team is only 1-0 and simply focused on their next game. Detroit will face the Seahawks on Sept. 17 at Ford Field in the team’s home opener.

Meanwhile, Detroit coach Dan Campbell told reporters in his postgame press conference that he had expected to knock off the Chiefs, a win that made the Lions 1-0 for the first time since 2017.

“I didn’t learn anything. I got verification on what I already knew: This is a resilient team,” Campbell said.

Asked what he learned about his team after its Thursday night win in Kansas City, Lions’ HC Dan Campbell said: “I didn’t learn anything. I got verification on what I already knew. This is a resilient team. It already was a resilient team….We are built to handle some stuff.” pic.twitter.com/Sh12oRc7M6

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 8, 2023

Detroit has not won a playoff game since 1991, the longest drought of any team in the league. The Chiefs, who opened the season as Super Bowl favorites, now share the top spot with the Eagles at DraftKings.

As of Friday morning, the two participants from Super Bowl LVII are the co-favorites at +650. Here are some other line movements following Thursday’s upset by the Lions:

• The Lions entered the season as high as +145 at FanDuel to win the NFC North. After last night, they’re down to -106 at BetRivers.
• Detroit opened at +2500 to win the Super Bowl at BetRivers. Today, BetRivers has them at +1600. At DraftKings, the Lions are the eighth choice to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at +1700. The team is sandwiched between the Jets and the Ravens, who have odds of +1600 and +1800, respectively.
• As for Campbell, who entered the season as the favorite to win Coach of the Year with +1200 odds, he’s still the favorite — at +600 at BetMGM.

Missed Thursday’s live blog? Do not fear; just click here