The matchup is set for Super Bowl 55. Ahead of the big game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on February 7, oddsmakers have been busy keeping a close watch on the influx of money coming in on both the spread and total.
Monitoring line movement is one of the best ways to assess where the money is going for NFL matchups. There are two types of bettors that frequent online sportsbooks: the public and the sharps.
The betting public is your average joe who likes to casually wager on football. The public will bet mostly favorites and tends to pay more attention to the teams that are receiving the most media attention.
On the other hand, sharp bettors tend to go against the grain and find value where not many others do. Books will shift lines depending on where the sharps are placing their bets. The sharpest bettors get their action in shortly after the odds are released, as they anticipate which way the lines will move.
Line movement can also account for injuries and, in 2020, the COVID-19 cases NFL teams were announcing each week.
For a full betting breakdown of the big game, check out our Super Bowl 55 preview.
Here’s a breakdown of the odds changes in Super Bowl 55:
NFL Line Movement of Super Bowl 55
Spread: Opened +3.5, Moved to +3, Now +3.5
Like the majority of sportsbooks, BetOnline opened the Buccaneers as 3.5-point underdogs immediately after their victory over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC championship game. The juice on the Chiefs’ spread was initially set at -125.
On Monday morning, that number jumped to +3. It sat there for roughly eight hours before shifting back to +3.5, where it currently sits. The juice, which was in the +103 ballpark earlier in the day, has moved to -119.
The Bucs are 2-1 ATS in the postseason, with their only failure to cover coming against the Washington Football Team on Wild Card Weekend. Fresh off consecutive outright wins and covers as a dog, Tampa Bay is playing in its third straight game as an underdog.
Kansas City is 1-1 ATS in the playoffs. The Chiefs failed to cover the spread as -8 chalk vs the Browns in the divisional round but breezed to a cover as -3 faves in their 38-24 triumph over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC championship game.
Total: Opened 56.5, Moved to 55.5, Now 56
There’s been no shortage of action on the total since Sunday evening. The shop opened the OVER/UNDER for Super Bowl 55 at 56.5 with -110 juice on both sides, but that was immediately bet down half a point to 56.
On Monday morning, the O/U briefly went down to 55.5, where it sat for only an hour and a half before coming back up to 56. It’s stayed put at 56 since then.
Tampa Bay has gone OVER in two of its three playoff contests, while Kansas City is 1-1 O/U so far.
