The 2026 NFL season hasn’t even kicked off yet, but the race to Super Bowl LXI has already changed considerably since last season ended.
The Los Angeles Rams have emerged as the clear early favorites, while the defending champion Seattle Seahawks aren’t even the closest team behind them.
Contents
Who is the favorite to win Super Bowl LXI?
The Los Angeles Rams are the current Super Bowl LXI favorites at around +500, putting a sizeable gap between them and the chasing pack. Buffalo is next at approximately +1000, followed by Baltimore at +1100 and defending champion Seattle at +1200.
A blockbuster offseason trade helped push Los Angeles to the top. The Rams acquired reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, adding the NFL’s single-season sack record holder to a team that was already one win away from the Super Bowl last season.
Here’s how the leading contenders currently stack up:
| Team | Super Bowl LXI odds* |
| Los Angeles Rams | +500 |
| Buffalo Bills | +1000 |
| Baltimore Ravens | +1100 |
| Seattle Seahawks | +1200 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | +1700 |
| New England Patriots | +1700 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | +1700 |
* Odds shown are an offseason market snapshot and can change.
Why have the Rams become Super Bowl favorites?
You could call Los Angeles’ offseason ambitious. That might be underselling it.
The biggest move was trading for Garrett, who recorded an NFL-record 23 sacks in 2025 and won his second Defensive Player of the Year award. Los Angeles sent Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-rounder, and a 2029 third-rounder to Cleveland to get him.
The impact on the betting market was immediate. The Rams shortened from around +800 to +550 following the trade and have since moved to approximately +500.
Garrett wasn’t their only defensive addition, either. The Rams also traded for All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie earlier in the offseason, while Matthew Stafford signed an extension after an MVP season.
In other words, the market isn’t reacting to one shiny new signing. Los Angeles has strengthened a team that was already very close.
Who is chasing the Rams?
Buffalo Bills: +1000
Buffalo went 12-5 in 2025, and Josh Allen remains the biggest reason to believe a Super Bowl breakthrough is possible.
The Bills also addressed a clear weakness by trading for DJ Moore. Buffalo’s wide receivers produced the ninth-fewest receiving yards among NFL WR groups last season, so adding a proven 1,000-yard receiver gives Allen another established downfield option.
At roughly twice the Rams’ price, Buffalo is the closest challenger on the current board.
Baltimore Ravens: +1100
Baltimore’s position is a little more interesting.
The Ravens finished just 8-9 last season and enter 2026 with a new head coach in Jesse Minter and a new offensive coordinator in Declan Doyle. That brings uncertainty, but Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry, Zay Flowers, and Mark Andrews still give the offense serious firepower.
Their short odds are essentially betting on a strong rebound rather than rewarding what happened in 2025.
Seattle Seahawks: +1200
Yes, the reigning Super Bowl champions are only fourth.
Seattle beat New England to win Super Bowl LX and returns most of the players who powered that run. Only five players departed in free agency, and just two of those were starters in the Super Bowl.
They also had the second-best defensive EPA per play in the NFL in 2025, so there is plenty of substance behind the championship banner.
New England Patriots: +1700
New England went from a rebuilding team to 14-3 and the Super Bowl in one season, led by Mike Vrabel and Drake Maye.
They’ve since added A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs to Maye’s receiving options, giving an already dangerous young quarterback an upgraded supporting cast.
Two longer-odds teams worth watching
Further down the board, two teams have statistical cases worth paying attention to.
The Jacksonville Jaguars (+2700) went 13-4 last season and ranked third in defensive EPA per play allowed. That combination makes their price interesting compared with teams much higher on the board.
Then there are the Minnesota Vikings (+4000). Minnesota only finished 9-8, but its defense ranked among the NFL’s top four in EPA per play allowed in 2025. If the offense improves, that defensive base gives Minnesota something tangible to build on.
Neither is a guarantee — that’s why the odds are longer — but there’s more to the case than simply calling them “sleepers.”
How do Super Bowl futures odds work?
A Super Bowl future is simply a bet on which team will win the championship, placed before the result is known.
Using American odds, +500 means a $100 bet would win $500 in profit, plus your $100 stake back for a $600 total return.
The same price in decimal odds is 6.00.
Generally, shorter odds indicate that the market gives a team a better chance of winning, while longer odds offer a bigger potential payout because that outcome is considered less likely.
Super Bowl odds will keep moving
Consider these prices an offseason snapshot, not a prediction carved into the Lombardi Trophy.
Injuries, trades, Week 1 performances, winning streaks, and a few surprise losses can all move futures odds significantly as the season develops.
For now, the Rams have created some daylight at the top. The bigger question is whether that gap survives once the football starts.
