If this year’s Super Bowl showdown between the juggernaut Kansas Chiefs and hard-nosed Philadelphia Eagles felt inevitable, that’s because it may have been so all along.
At least, it appears that way based on one professional sports bettor’s intuition back in October. Las Vegas-based gambler Scott Pritchard, who describes himself as an “expert handicapper,” nabbed a Chiefs over Eagles ticket during the NFL season’s first half at an astonishing 55-1 price. Pritchard has the chance to walk away with a remarkable $220,000 after wagering $4,000.
“It’s not like me to bet on a favorite but the fact that the Chiefs went on the road a year ago and (quarterback Patrick) Mahomes, statistically, had his worst season and they still won the Super Bowl, I felt that this year they would have the inside track to make history with the three-peat,” Pritchard told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “They started out 5-0 and the toughest part of their schedule was behind them, so instead of betting Kansas City to win the AFC at 2-1 or 3-1, I thought I would do an exacta.”
Now, Pritchard says, the name of the game is hedging, as he sought to maximize his return based on a few shrewd plays over the past month.
“If I can remove my biased Kansas City futures bet, this Philly team is for real. This is a revenge spot from two years ago, there are so many different ways Philly can beat you and I love their defense,” he said.
“The bottom line is I’m going to have a good six figures riding on Philly to guarantee myself six figures regardless. But I’m not betting the money line,” Pritchard added, noting he placed a $25,000 wager on the Eagles +2 (-109) in the Super Bowl and $25,000 on the Eagles +3 (-144) to help mitigate potential disaster. He also placed “a few thousand” on the Bills +2½ in Buffalo’s 32-29 loss to the Chiefs on Jan. 26.
The road to Super Bowl LIX
Both teams had particularly unique journeys to this point ahead of what's expected to be an incredibly tightly played contest, with the Chiefs favored by just a single point at most books. That's an improvement from their last two trips, where they entered as underdogs by 1.5 and 2.5 points, respectively.
Kansas City, hoping to become the first NFL franchise to win three straight Super Bowls, breezed past the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round thanks to a well-rounded and stifling defense, before eeking out a thrilling three-point win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship.
The Eagles, meanwhile, made their way to the Big Game thanks in large part to running back Saquon Barkley's continued historic efforts. Barkley sits just 30 yards shy of the most productive rushing combined regular and postseason in NFL history.
His excellence was on particular display in the NFC Divisional Round against the upstart L.A. Rams, where he rushed for 205 yards and a pair of scores, including an incredible 78-yard scamper that saw him smack his helmet in celebration.
“I always dreamed about it but the dream wasn’t about just getting there,” Barkley said of the Super Bowl following the Eagles NFC Championship win the following week over the Washington Commanders. “It was to win it.”
