Super Bowl Bettors Rejoice as Bengals Cover, Cooper Kupp Wins MVP

The Rams won on the moneyline, the Bengals covered and the under cashed in Super Bowl LVI. Analysis of the big bets that cashed and those that did not.

Super Bowl LVI kept bettors glued to their seats.

The Rams won on the moneyline via a Cooper Kupp touchdown with 1:29 remaining. 

The over/under hung in the balance until the Rams forced a late stop.

Ja'Marr Chase needed one final catch on the last drive to top his receptions prop.

Matthew Stafford's final kneel-down mattered for his rushing yards prop.

Let's just hope you all had a better day than Mattress Mack.

So, here's the final recap of the NFL season: the good, the bad and the ugly from Super Bowl LVI betting!

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THE GOOD

He's Got a Ring

Before joining the Rams, quarterback Matthew Stafford never had a playoff win in his previous 12 seasons, now he has four of them including a Super Bowl victory. Stafford delivered for bettors on the biggest stage, clearing the over in most of his props with his 283-yard, three-touchdown performance.

Stafford cleared the over on these props (odds included):

• Passing yards (279.5): -120
• Passing touchdowns (1.5): -250
• Passing completions (23.5): -141
• Interceptions (0.5): -112
• Passing/Rushing yards (287.5): -120
• Passing attempts (35.5): -133
• Rushing yards (5.5): -118

Here's an added bonus: Stafford just cleared the passing yards and rushing yards props, including the latter by a half-yard.

As we mentioned before, Stafford kneeling for just a one-yard loss on the final play instead of two yards secured the over for that bet.

Does this performance solidify Stafford as a Hall of Fame? Let the debates begin.

Under Pressure

Those who bet the under (48.5) at -110 odds experienced a swing of emotions during the game. The first quarter and halftime scores boded well, but the Bengals scoring 10 quick points to start the second half boosted the live over/under to the 50s.

When the Rams took a 23-20 lead with 1:29 remaining, it opened the door for the over to cash via a touchdown or field goal (overtime).

But Aaron Donald saved the day by forcing an errant pass from Joe Burrow that resulted in a turnover on downs and kept the Bengals off the board.

Crazy 8's

SI Sportsbook offered bettors the opportunity entering the playoffs to bet which players would tally the most passing, rushing and receiving yards this postseason.

Each winner paid out with at least +800 odds!

Stafford (+850) threw for the most yards, Joe Mixon (+850) ran for the most yards and Kupp (+800) registered the most receiving yards.

Only Kupp entered as a favorite (tied with Davante Adams).

The Biggest Parlay

SI Sportsbook always offers lots of parlays for bettors to choose from. The biggest one to cash for Super LVI featured the Rams winning, covering a 2.5-point spread in the first half and Kupp tallying two-plus touchdowns at +590 odds.

A Bengals win would have resulted in much greater payouts, but +590 is nothing to sneeze at. Thank you, Mr. Kupp!

A Non-Quarterback MVP

Kupp won MVP with his two-touchdown performance, including the game-winner, and rewarded his backers with +600 odds.

Kupp is only the second receiver in the last 13 seasons to Super Bowl win MVP, joining Julian Edelman. The award usually goes to a quarterback.

Those who backed a receiver winning MVP received +250 odds as well.

Sacks on Sacks

If you watched the Bengals this postseason, you knew they had offensive line troubles.

Yours truly jumped on betting over 3.5 Rams sacks, and SI Sportsbook offered boosted +175 odds that both Donald and Von Miller would tally sacks.

Miller and Donald combined for four sacks (two each) and the Rams had seven.

Donald (-185) and Miller (-200) each also topped their sacks props of 0.5.

Easy money.

Three's Company!

If you liked this game to end in a field goal, you won big!

Bettors cashed at +450 odds that this game would end exactly with a three-point margin. That late Rams' touchdown sealed the deal.

That's what we like to see!

Getting Lucky

Chase got the best of Jalen Ramsey and won his bettors money.

The Bengals' rookie receiver cashed his receiving yards (80.5) and longest reception (27.5) props at -120 and -115 odds, respectively.

He also cashed the over on his rushing yards prop of 3.5 at -118 odds.

But there was some luck involved.

Chase's "rush" was a backwards pass that barely stayed behind the line of scrimmage. He did not tally any other rushes or touch the ball on an end-around. Had that ball been thrown a few inches forward, it's a four-yard catch for Chase.

His final catch of 17 yards cashed the over on his receiving prop—he had 72 yards at the time—and it involved making a defender miss.

Had Chase been tackled, the under cashes on that bet as well.

But your wallet doesn't care!

First, Last, Anytime

Here is the final first/last/anytime touchdown props results:

• Rams WR Odell Beckham Jr.: +875 first/+120 anytime
• Rams WR Cooper Kupp: +475 last/-175 anytime
• Bengals WR Tee Higgins: +150 anytime

Bengals' Skill Players Get It Done

Mixon had a nice game, totaling 72 rushing yards and even throwing a touchdown pass to Higgins.

Mixon also topped his longest rush prop by just a half-yard to cash at -118 odds, with his longest run going for 14 yards and his prop set at 13.5.

We always love the bets that just clear the mark!

Higgins also cleared his receiving yards prop (69.5) and his longest reception (24.5) props at -118 and -125 odds, respectively.

Heck, Higgins cleared them both on his 75-yard touchdown reception to start the third half. He finished with 100 yards and two touchdowns.

First Score!

Yours truly loves betting the Super Bowl's first score and whiffed this year by betting on a Rams field goal. Instead, a Rams touchdown cashed at +350 odds.

The field goal almost happened since the Rams scored on 3rd-and-3 at the Bengals' 17-yard line when Stafford found Beckham in the end zone.

A 3.5-to-1 payout is always a good time!

A Big Stop!

The Rams forcing a turnover on downs cashed at +500 odds that the Bengals' first drive would result in something other than a touchdown, punt or field goal.

That, by far, provided the best payouts of any of the options.

Interceptions Pay Big!

Stafford tossed a pair of interceptions that paid out quite handsomely!

Chidobe Awuzie's interception cashed the over on his interceptions prop at +510 odds, while Jessie Bates III's pick also cleared the over at +425 odds.

Stafford tied for the league-lead in interceptions during the regular season, making these defenders' props enticing.

You're My Boy, Blue!

A favorite novelty prop bet is the color of the Gatorade shower, and this year it cashed at +450 when the Rams poured Blue Gatorade on their coach.

I'll be honest: I've never really liked the blue Gatorade.

Money Mac

No wonder his nickname is Money Mac.

Bengals kicker Evan McPherson delivered again for his backers, topping 7.5 total points (-125) and 1.5 field goals (-154). He finished a perfect 14 for 14 in field goal attempts this postseason.

There's a reason why our experts loved his player props for this game.

Random Musings

Here are some other bets that cashed at plus-odds:

• Rams first quarter -3.5: +155
• Matt Stafford sacked first: +150
• First half highest scoring half: +110
• Second quarter under 13.5 points: +100
• Fourth quarter under 13 points: +100
• Rams first team to punt three times: +100
• Rams win first half/Rams win final score: +100
• Touchdown longest score of the game: +100

THE BAD

So Close

The Bengals needed either a stop or a late touchdown to win on the moneyline at +175 odds, but could not do either.

They also ruined a potential parlay cashing at +850 odds that they would win, the Rams would win the first half and the under would cash. Cincinnati also would have cashed a bet at +275 that it would win and also win the coin toss.

We are not including the +950 parlay that featured the Bengals winning, the under 48.5 hitting and Chase topping 85 receiving yards since a late touchdown would have cashed the over, and Chase likely doesn't get another touch and would have finished with 72 receiving yards had the Rams not scored their go-ahead touchdown.

The Bengals not sending the game to overtime also cost those who bet the game needing an extra period at +1200 odds. Cincinnati had 2nd-and-1 at the 49-yard line but could not get one measly yard on their final three plays!

Not so Green Akers

Cam Akers' return was inspiring, but his production was not.

Akers inefficient postseason continued with another dud in the Super Bowl. Akers finished with 13 rushes for 21 yards and 14 additional receiving yards.

The unders cashed on Akers' rushing yards, rushing/receiving yards, longest rush and rushing attempts. Fading Akers' was a wise play, but we're putting him in the bad section since he did not come close to making money for his over bettors. 

The Flip Side

While McPherson delivered for his backers, Matt Gay did not.

Gay failed to clear his total points (7.5), field goals (1.5) and extra points (2.5) props.

The extra points prop was a brutal beat since a fumbled snap on the second touchdown prevented him from kicking. He finished with two.

THE UGLY

Brrrrrrow

Joe Burrow, unlike Stafford, burned his backers.

Burrow, facing constant pressure, finished with 263 yards and a touchdown but failed to top most of his props.

Here are some of the Burrow unders that cashed:

• Passing yards (275.5)
• Passing touchdowns (1.5)
• Passing completions (24.5)
• Passing/Rushing yards (290.5)
• Rushing yards (11.5)

Burrow not throwing a second touchdown also ruined a boosted parlay at +175 odds (up from +125) that both he and Stafford would have two-plus passing touchdowns. 

We don't blame Burrow for not having a bigger game considering the state of his O-Line, but it's fair to say his backers expected more.

Unfortunate Injury

Beckham seemed well on his way to topping his props, but his playing time ended early due to a knee injury that knocked him out of the game in the second quarter.

The receiver did score the game's first touchdown, which paid well, but the unders cashed on his receptions and yards due to the injury.

Beckham finished with two catches for 52 yards, while his line was set at 5.5 catches for 63.5 yards. He could have cleared both had he played the whole game.

His injury also affected a potential boosted parlay at +275 odds (up from +225) that both he and Chase would top 80 and 65 yards, respectively.

Just an unfortunate situation.

No Correlation

While Stafford delivered and Kupp won MVP, the Rams' top three receivers each failed to clear their receiving yards props.

Kupp, despite his two-touchdown game, did not clear 106.5 yards. Beckham, due to his injury, did not top 63.5. Van Jefferson fell below 30.5 yards.

Beckham and Kupp also did not clear their receptions totals, and Kupp did not top his longest reception prop of 29.5 yards.

Yours truly missed out on a nice three-way parlay featuring a Kupp touchdown/Jefferson receiving yards under/Kupp receiving yards over since Kupp fell short. Overtime would have helped that potential cause!

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