The NFL Draft is now over, and the rookies for each of the 32 NFL teams will soon be donning their practice gear and getting workouts in at their rookie minicamps. For the young players, it’s the beginning fo a journey for which they’ve been preparing since elementary school. For us, as gambling fans, it’s our next opportunity to profit off of their production, or lack thereof!
The ink wasn’t even dry on all of the final draft report cards, before the odds on how several of the most prominent rookies would fare statistically, as an individual. That’s right! Courtesy of BetOnline.ag, we’ve got futures bets on individual stats for the most famous of the rookie players. I’ve picked out six of the players below, on which I intend to place a healthy amount (for me) of American currency.
Here they are:
Travis Hunter – Total Receptions, UNDER 70.5
Travis Hunter – Interceptions, UNDER 2.5
Hunter, of course, is the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner whose calling card, in winning the award, was his status as a full time player on both sides of the football. Hunter is an elite wide receiver and an elite cornerback. The Jaguars gave up a TON of draft capital to move up three spots and select him, so it’s a given that he will see time on both sides of the football. I don’t care what anyone says, making the transition to the NFL and playing BOTH ways, even sporadically on one side or the other, is astoundingly difficult. The play here is to take the under for Hunter’s stats on both sides of the ball, and worst case, you split.
Ashton Jeanty – Total Rushing Yards, OVER 1000.5
Ashton Jeanty – Total Rushing TDs, OVER 7
Jeanty was the runner up, by just a few votes, to Hunter for the Heisman Trophy. Unlike Hunter, Jeanty is being asked to do just one thing — pound the rock on the ground for the Raiders. The Raiders were one of the worst rushing teams in football last season, but that was with Aidan O’Connell as their quarterback. While new signal caller Geno Smith isn’t Patrick Mahomes or anything, he is a slightly above average NFL quarterback, good enough to open things up for the Jeanty-led run game. Make no mistake, the Raiders are going to pound Jeanty into the ground running the football. 1,000 yards is not that tough an ask anymore, if a back is getting 15 touches or so per game. The yardage bet feels like a layup, and anytime the Raiders are inside the opposing five yard line, Jeanty’s number will be called, so take the touchdowns, too.
Colston Loveland – Total Receiving Yards, UNDER 600.5
Now let’s get to the two most prominent tight ends in the draft, Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren. Loveland was a bit of a surprise, going in the top ten to the Bears, but he is a very good player and fluid athlete. That said, the Bears have loaded up on options for Caleb Williams in the passing game. Loveland might not even be the leading receiving tight end on the Bears, with Cole Kmet under contract. Between that and the general difficulty of throwing the football in Chicago after early November, let’s go UNDER on the yardage total for Loveland.
Tyler Warren – Total Receiving Yards, UNDER 550.5
Then there is Warren, who was thought to be the top tight end on the board for most of draft season, before slipping behind Loveland and going to the Colts at the 14th overall selection on draft night. Warren is a smaller version of Rob Gronkowski, a very willing blocker and a talented pass catcher. That said, he is going to have either Anthony Richardson or Daniel Jones throwing him the football, and if you take the OVER on any pass catcher’s prop bet stats with those two at quarterback, you’re the sucker.
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