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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Seahawks favored to repeat

Associated Press
LAS VEGAS – Training camps are weeks away, but Las Vegas’ legal bookmakers are already making bets on what the NFL season will look like. Turns out it could be a lot like the last, with the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos favored to meet again next February in Arizona. Seattle is a 9-2 favorite at the LVH sports book, while the Broncos are next at 5-1 to win the Super Bowl. Both teams are favored to win more regular-season games than any other team, with oddsmakers putting the over/under for wins at 11 games. “The Broncos have a real tough schedule so it won’t be an easy task,” said Jeff Sherman, part of a team that sets the LVH odds. “They have some tough early games outside their division, including the Super Bowl rematch” with Seattle in Week 3. The Seahawks are 31/2-point favorites to beat the Broncos at home in that game, a line that figures to draw some early action even before either team puts on the pads this summer. Denver was a 2-point favorite in the Super Bowl, which Seattle won 43-8. Sherman said there is more parity than ever in the NFL, with 19 teams expected to win between seven and nine games and only five expected to win 10 or more. At the bottom of the pack is Jacksonville, with a 41/2-win line, and Oakland at five games. Despite the parity, teams in the NFC are favored more than teams in the AFC. Bettors can wager on which conference wins the Super Bowl, with the NFC a 31/2-point favorite. “The one thing that really stood out when we went through this game by game was how many good teams are in the NFC,” Sherman said. NFL games are by far the biggest attraction for sports bettors, who placed a record $119.4 million in legal wagers in Nevada on the last Super Bowl. Nevada is the only state where full betting on games is allowed, though bettors in Delaware can wager on parlays of more than one team.