NFL draft betting: Top three picks were no surprise to BetMGM's big money bettors
Bettors nailed the first three selections of the 2022 NFL draft.
A majority of the money bet at BetMGM had Travon Walker, Aidan Hutchinson and Derek Stingley Jr. going 1-2-3 on Thursday night. Walker was taken first by the Jacksonville Jaguars, Hutchinson went second to the Detroit Lions and Stingley was the No. 3 pick by the Houston Texans.
Just over 50% of the total money bet on the first overall pick was on the Georgia edge rusher. Walker opened at +3000 to go No. 1 but was at -500 to be the top pick just before the draft began as reports circulated that the Jaguars were honing in on him. The money bet on Walker to go No. 1 came on just 16% of bets.
Over 64% of the money bet on the second pick was on Hutchinson to go to the Lions. That money came from nearly 33% of bets as Hutchinson went from being +250 to go second overall to -220 before the draft. He was a no-brainer selection for the Lions with Walker off the board.
There was also a lot of late movement for Stingley at No. 3. Just shy of a quarter of the bets were on the LSU CB to be the third pick and those bets made up 54% of the total handle. Stingley opened at +750 to go No. 3 and closed at -125.
“The NFL draft was a success for many BetMGM bettors," BetMGM's Seamus Magee said. "Travon Walker to go first overall, Derek Stingley Jr. third overall and Kayvon Thibodeaux fifth overall were bad outcomes for the book. Drake London as the first receiver was the best prop for the book.”
Stingley was also at -125 to be the first cornerback taken in the draft. Nearly half of the tickets on the first CB off the board were on Stingley and those bets made up 41.3% of the handle. Only Cincinnati’s Sauce Gardner — who went fourth to the Jets — got more money than Stingley.
Bettors got great value in both Kenny Pickett and London to be the first players at their respective positions taken in the draft. Pickett went No. 20 to the Steelers and was the only QB taken in the first round. He closed at +150 to be the top QB and almost 40% of the first QB wagers were on the Pitt QB.
The USC receiver was +185 to be the first wide receiver taken. The Falcons chose him at No. 8 and that pick was a relative surprise for many bettors. London was the third-most bet player to be the top wide receiver chosen.
BetMGM also noted that its Super Bowl odds didn’t budge after the first night of the draft. The Bills are still the favorite to win the Super Bowl at +650, with the Buccaneers at +750 and the Chiefs at +900. They are the only three teams with odds better than +1000 to lift the Lombardi Trophy in February.
