Posted on: December 26, 2023, 02:37h.
Last updated on: December 26, 2023, 02:55h.
The Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 33-19, on Christmas Day in the battle of the top teams from each conference. The 49ers remain as the betting favorite to win Super Bowl LVIII at +225 odds, but the Ravens saw their odds improve to +350.
The Week 16 meeting between the 49ers and Ravens provided fans a glimpse of a potential Super Bowl matchup.
The 49ers were a -6 favorite against the visiting Ravens, who pulled off an impressive 14-point road victory.
Super Bowl LVIII Odds Update | |
San Francisco 49ers | +225 |
Baltimore Ravens | +350 |
Miami Dolphins | +750 |
Philadelphia Eagles | +800 |
Kansas City Chiefs | +800 |
Dallas Cowboys | +1000 |
Buffalo Bills | +1200 |
Detroit Lions | +1700 |
Last week at this time, the 49ers were +200 odds to win the Super Bowl and the Ravens were second on the board at +550 odds.
With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the 49ers are still the betting favorite to win the Super Bowl but their odds took a slight hit to +225.
San Francisco 49ers +225
The 49ers began the season with a 5-0 record before they lost three games in a row, which coincided with an injury to wide receiver Deebo Samuel and quarterback Brock Purdy’s concussion. With Samuel back in the lineup, the 49ers won six games in a row. They seized the #1 seed in the NFC with an 11-3 record, and Purdy emerged as an MVP favorite during their recent six-game winning streak.
The 49ers and Ravens squared off on “Monday Night Football,” which capped off a Christmas tripleheader for the NFL. Despite all the hype, the 49ers got off to a terrible start and the game quickly got out of hand.
Purdy struggled against the Ravens and tossed four interceptions in his worst game of the season. In a recent episode of his podcast, Bill Simmons suggested that Purdy was banged up in a victory against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 15, and his poor play on Christmas was the result of that lingering injury.
Purdy exited the game in the fourth quarter with a stinger after absorbing a big hit. Backup quarterback Sam Darnold came off the bench and threw a touchdown, but he was also picked off once and sacked twice.
The 49ers slipped to 11-4 after the loss to the Ravens. They retained the #1 seed in the NFC even though the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles also have the same record.
The 49ers began the season as the consensus favorite to win Super Bowl LVIII. They spent the first six weeks of the season at the top of the NFL futures board before the Kansas City Chiefs overtook them in October. The 49ers re-emerged as the consensus favorite to win the Super Bowl after Week 12.
Baltimore Ravens +350
The red-hot Ravens won five games in a row and improved to 12-3 after a clutch road win against the 49ers. The surging Ravens now have the best record in the NFL, and they’d lock up the #1 playoff seed in the AFC over the Miami Dolphins (11-4) and Cleveland Browns (10-5).
Our guys work hard, they compete hard,” said head coach John Harbaugh. “Everybody wants to be respected. There’s one way to be respected, and that’s to go out there and earn that.”
Quarterback Lamar Jackson shrugged off an early safety and guided the Ravens to a double-digit victory over the 49ers. He finished with 252 passing yards and two touchdowns, and added 45 rushing yards on seven attempts.
With a big win, Jackson established himself as a front-runner to win the MVP.
“I thought Lamar had an MVP performance tonight,” added Harbaugh. “It takes a team to create a performance like that, but it takes a player to play at that level. An MVP level. Lamar was all over the field.”
The Ravens are now +350 odds to win the Super Bowl and second overall on the futures board behind the 49ers.
One bookmaker revealed a look-ahead line of a potential rematch between the Ravens and 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. Despite the loss Monday night, the 49ers would remain a favorite in the Super over the Ravens, but by only a margin of two points or -2.
Kansas City Chiefs +800
The defending champion Chiefs (9-6) are no longer the dominating team that imposed their will on opposing defenses. They looked mortal this season while their offense struggled.
The Chiefs didn’t have tight end Travis Kelce in the season opener due to a knee injury, and they lost to the Detroit Lions by one point. Kelce returned in Week 2, and the Chiefs won six games in a row, including one close victory against the New York Jets that enraged bettors.
The Chiefs saw their season slowly go off the rails since they lost to the Denver Broncos, 24-9, in Week 8. They went 3-5 over their last eight games, and followed up their last three victories with a loss.
The offensive line has done a poor job protecting Patrick Mahomes and providing consistent run blocking during their recent downturn. Things got so ugly in a 20-14 loss against the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas that a sideline camera captured a frustrated Mahomes lambasting his offensive line.
Mahomes relied heavily on Kelce to make big plays during their previous championship runs, but Kelce battled multiple injuries this season. His off-the-field relationship with pop star Taylor Swift has garnered significant mainstream media and social media attention, which has overshadowed the fact that his age and cluster injuries are finally catching up to him.
The Chiefs lack depth at wide receiver, and the season has been plagued with numerous dropped passes at key moments in several losses.
The struggling Chiefs are currently +800 odds to win the Super Bowl, and their futures have been trending in the wrong direction in the second half of the season.